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AJPH First Look, published online ahead of print Dec 27, 2005
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April 2006, Vol 96, No. 4 | American Journal of Public Health 647-653
© 2006 American Public Health Association
DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2004.048496

RESEARCH AND PRACTICE

Complementary and Alternative Medical Therapy Use Among Chinese and Vietnamese Americans: Prevalence, Associated Factors, and Effects of Patient–Clinician Communication

Andrew C. Ahn, MD, MPH, Quyen Ngo-Metzger, MD, MPH, Anna T.R. Legedza, ScD, Michael P. Massagli, PhD, Brian R. Clarridge, PhD and Russell S. Phillips, MD

Andrew C. Ahn, Anna T.R. Legedza, and Russell S. Phillips are with the Division for Research and Education in Complementary and Integrative Medical Therapies, Harvard Medical School, and the Division of General Medicine and Primary Care, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Mass. Quyen Ngo-Metzger is with Health Policy Research, University of California at Irvine College of Medicine, Irvine. Michael P. Massagli is with the Division of Population Sciences, Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston. Brian R. Clarridge is with the Center for Survey Research, University of Massachusetts, Boston.

Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to Andrew C. Ahn, MD, MPH, Division for Research and Education in Complementary and Integrative Medical Therapies, Harvard Medical School, 401 Park Dr, Ste 22A-West, Boston, MA 02215 (e-mail: aahn{at}hms.harvard.edu).

Objective. We examined the use of complementary and alternative medical (CAM) therapies among Chinese and Vietnamese Americans who had limited proficiency with the English language and explore the association between patient–clinician discussions about CAM therapy use and patient assessments of quality of care.

Methods. We surveyed Chinese and Vietnamese Americans who visited 11 community health centers in 8 major cities throughout the United States.

Results. Of the 4410 patients surveyed, 3258 (74%) returned completed questionnaires. Two thirds of respondents reported they had "ever used" some form of CAM therapy; however, only 7.6% of these patients had discussed their use of CAM therapies with clinicians. Among patients who had used CAM therapies during the week before their most recent visits, clinician–patient discussions about CAM therapy use were associated with better overall patient ratings of quality of care.

Conclusion. Use of CAM therapies was common among Chinese and Vietnamese Americans who had limited proficiency with the English language. Although discussions about CAM therapy use with clinicians were uncommon, these discussions were associated with better ratings of quality of care.






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