In 2011, The Bravewell Collaborative, a philanthropic organization that works to improve healthcare, commissioned a survey to determine how integrative medicine was currently being practiced across the United States. The study, which involved 29 established integrative medicine centers, looked at the patient populations and health conditions most commonly treated, the core practices and models of care in use, how services were reimbursed, the values and principles underlying the care, and the main factors driving successful implementation.

This study, “Integrative Medicine in America: How Integrative Medicine is Being Practiced in Clinical Centers Across the United States,” which is being featured in this issue of Global Advances in Health and Medicine, was first released in February 2012. Most related research has looked at what complementary modalities are being used and by whom, but not for what and most importantly, not with what. This is the first in-depth look at actual integrative clinical practice and as such, the data reveals how the whole patient (body, mind, and spirit) is treated, how both conventional and complementary interventions are used in tandem, how different practitioners collaborate, and how core values are implemented. We are delighted to be able to share this study with a global audience.