For millions of people living in chronic pain from debilitating backache, headaches, arthritis, fibromyalgia or systemic inflammatory conditions, getting through activities of daily life can feel like a battle. Health care practitioners are realizing that integrative therapies — for example, yoga, nutrition, herbal remedies, mindfulness, trauma therapy, massage and acupuncture — can help people manage their own pain more effectively than opioids, injections, surgery, which typically bring short-term relief, and for some, addiction, depression and anguish.
To learn about and share best practices, research and innovations in treatments for chronic pain, a worldwide community of health care practitioners, scholars, and students gathered online for the second Integrative Pain Management Conference on May 7. The event, presented by UVM Integrative Health and hosted by the College of Nursing and Health Sciences and UVM Medical Center, took place live on Zoom with enduring materials remaining available for health practitioners' continuing education.
Nurses, medical doctors, physical therapists, pharmacists, athletic trainers and psychologists joined acupuncturists, massage therapists, naturopaths, herbalists, health coaches and other integrative practitioners for plenary sessions and seminars. Scholarships allowed practitioners who work with underserved populations to attend. Topics included pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic approaches to pain and anxiety, pain neuroscience, opioid tapering, integrative approaches to specific pain conditions and patient engagement in managing pain. Experiential workshops allowed participants to take a deeper dive into integrative treatments including therapeutic yoga for calming the nervous system, myofascial release for back, neck and hips, building balance with foods for chronic pain and mindfulness interventions in clinical practice.
"This conference is an essential aspect of reducing opioid prescriptions and addiction in the community, providing patient-centered care, reducing health care costs and improving health outcomes," said Cara Feldman-Hunt, program manager for UVM Integrative Health.
To view the conference sessions and earn continuing education credits, participants may purchase the recording.
Integrative health education and research
The conference is one of the ongoing activities highlighting the creativity and successes of interdisciplinary, integrative approaches to providing patient-centered care, reducing health care costs and improving health outcomes. Other UVM Integrative Health initiatives include:
- UVM Integrative Health rolling out a group lifestyle coaching program for employees of UVM and UVM Medical Center. This 12-week program is based the Open Source Wellness model, which aims to be the behavioral equivalent of a pharmacy for behaviors that drive human health and wellbeing: physical activity, nutritious food, stress reduction and social support. The integrative health faculty will collect data on health outcomes to explore the feasibility and effectiveness of this program for worksite health and wellness.
- The endowed Laura Mann Integrative Healthcare Lecture Series, which brings leaders in integrative health and medicine to share best practices and current research and innovations in the field with faculty, staff, students, hospital administration and leadership from the university and hospital.
- An Integrative Practitioner Forum, providing an ongoing structure for local health care providers, faculty and students to learn from and network with each other, and for practitioners who are working collaboratively to present their findings and successes.
- An introductory gardening, nutrition and health education program for cancer survivors supported by a grant from the UVM Medical Center Auxiliary. The program connects concepts of physical activity, healthy eating and self-efficacy by engaging participants actively in a shared garden space on at the rooftop garden on UVMMC’s Main Hospital Campus.
- An integrative health and wellness coaching certificate program that prepares practitioners to use integrative health strategies, motivational interviewing and behavioral change strategies to promote health and wellness. The certificate is offered to undergraduate students in all majors and as a post baccalaureate program for people who work in health care and wellness professions. The first cohort of students in this program sat for the National Board of Health and Wellness Coaches certification exam in February with a 94% pass rate and has joined the workforce.
- Program faculty are currently developing a research platform to gather data measuring integrative therapy’s impacts on health care spending, health improvements among people experiencing chronic pain, and health coaching outcomes.
In addition to educational programs and research, UVM Integrative Health also oversees integrative therapies at the UVM Children’s Hospital, UVM Cancer Center and the UVM Comprehensive Pain Program and is actively involved with policy change at the national level around non-pharmacological pain management, payment for integrative health care and health and wellness coaching.