Health Medicine Forum: The Principles of Health Medicine

The Principles of Health Medicine

Integrative

There is no one path to wellness. We remain open minded and objective in our approach to all healthcare disciplines. There is so much to be learned from the experiences of those who practice beyond the boundaries of their own training. It is logical to work together to find common ground and select healing options that best suit each individual’s unique needs.

Holistic

The concept of holism is the inseparable nature of body, mind, emotion, and spirit. We are still in the infancy of understanding how these realms interrelate. We believe that healing goes far beyond treating a “set of symptoms” with a “bag of tools.” A meaningful healing process requires not only understanding the nature of disease and the nature of the patient, but also of the connection between them and how they interrelate with the entire universe; we see illness as a process of personal transformation.

Person Centered

You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink. We discovered that by inspiring our patients to take responsibility for their healthcare choices, they naturally gravitate toward choices that promote wellness. Promoting self-empowerment through the development of a deep, caring, personal relationship where the healthcare practitioner is an active and sensitive listener, makes it possible to create a sacred space where meaningful dialogues emerge. An alliance often follows for a joint willingness to be vulnerable and “not know.” This setting encourages the development of new insights and previously under-explored and innovative possibilities for healing.

Preventive

Integral Health Medicine practitioners believe that true primary care is based on using healthy lifestyle choices and tools that insure stress reduction, proper nutrition, exercise, adequate sleep, detoxification, cultivating healthy relationships and finding meaningful purpose in life. In instances where additional support is appropriate, natural remedies are utilized before more invasive approaches such as pharmaceutical drugs and surgeries are considered. Therapies are blended from whatever best fits the needs of each unique patient. Prevention, along with restoration and maintenance of optimal health form the cornerstones of Integral Health Medicine — a new healthcare paradigm.