[Evaluation methods of clinical efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine].

Clinical efficacy is the basis for the development of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM), and the evaluation of clinical efficacy of TCM has always been the focus of attention. The technical and methodological difficulties in the evaluation process often restrict the generation of high-level evidence. Therefore, methodological research should be deepened and innovative practice should be carried out to study the application of scientific research methods in the evaluation of the advantages of TCM. After more than ten years of development, the clinical efficacy evaluation of TCM, on the basis of the initially classic placebo randomized controlled trials, has successively carried out a series of meaningful attempts and explorations in N-of-1 trials, cohort studies, case-control studies, cross-sectional studies, real world studies, narrative medicine studies, systematic evaluation, and other aspects, laying the foundation for the transformation of TCM from "experience" to "evidence". This paper focused on the clinical efficacy evaluation of TCM, summarized the main connotation and development status of efficacy evaluation indicators, standards, and methods, and put forward corresponding countermeasures and suggestions for the problems of indicator selection, standard formulation, and methodology optimization in the research process. It is clear that scientific and objective evaluation of the efficacy of TCM is an urgent problem to be solved at present.

A multi-method quasi-experimental study to assess compassion satisfaction/fatigue in nurses, midwives and allied health professionals receiving a narrative medicine intervention.

AIMS: To: (1) measure the impact of a narrative medicine intervention on compassion fatigue and compassion satisfaction of nurses, midwives and allied health professionals; (2) explore participants' working experiences and (3) their impressions of the intervention. DESIGN: Multi-methods, quasi-experimental before-after intervention design. METHODS: The intervention consisted of 20 narrative medicine sessions (60 h). Healthcare providers (N = 48) from a mother-and-child hospital in Italy completed the 'Professional quality of life' questionnaire before and after the intervention (January 2020-April 2021). Baseline scores served as internal controls. Open-ended questions explored participants' touching experiences at work and their evaluation of the intervention. A thematic content analysis was performed. Reporting followed the TREND and SRQR guidelines. RESULTS: The differences before-after intervention in compassion satisfaction or fatigue scores were not statistically significant. Three themes emerged from participants' touching experiences: "Witnessing death and sufferance"; "Witnessing violence" and "Organizational stressors during COVID-19". A statistically significantly higher median score for post-intervention compassion satisfaction was found among participants who reported at least one touching experience compared to those who had no touching experience. Four themes emerged from the reported strengths of the program: "Learning to exteriorize feelings"; "Team building"; "Useful to rework personal/professional journey" and "Develops professional empowerment". Two themes emerged from reported weaknesses: "Programme organization" and "Participants' difficulties in sharing experiences". CONCLUSION: A time-limited narrative medicine intervention is not sufficient to produce significant changes in satisfaction or compassion fatigue, especially if implemented during a pandemic. However, such an intervention holds promise for supporting nurses and midwives' professional empowerment and promoting continuity of compassionate care. IMPACT: For those at risk of compassion fatigue, policymakers need to invest in training in narrative medicine, which promotes team building, and employee well-being and thus favours compassionate care. Such programmes should be offered to undergraduate students to nurture compassion and attention to self. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: Does not apply as the study only includes health care providers.

Understanding the value of art prompts in an online narrative medicine workshop: an exploratory-descriptive focus group study.

Narrative medicine is an interdisciplinary field that complements and expands on conventional healthcare training by supporting narrative competence skills and creativity derived from the arts and humanities domains to address the needs of healthcare providers and receivers. With the COVID-19 pandemic having had a profound impact on the healthcare workforce with an already high burn-out rate, multimodal arts interventions may help address the holistic dimensions of well-being. While empirical evidence supports the use of arts-based interventions in promoting healthcare workers' well-being and personal growth, art prompts are underexplored and underused in narrative medicine. Moreover, protocols and frameworks adopted in extant research on this topic are inconsistent, resulting in replication and validation challenges. These issues have motivated this exploratory-descriptive study with 11 narrative medicine practitioners to examine the use of short art prompts in an online narrative medicine workshop.The art prompts leveraged art therapy's Expressive Therapies Continuum (ETC) model, which uses the inherent properties of art materials, media and methods to elicit specific levels of information processing and creative experiences. The study aimed to understand how art prompts differ from writing prompts and explore the value art prompts could add to narrative medicine if any. Qualitative analyses revealed that art prompts in narrative medicine increase positive feelings and promote creativity and insight. Specifically, art prompts allowed participants to use sensorimotor functions, enter a flow-like state, be challenged and inspired by novelty and uncertainty, and experience a sense of play and personal discovery.

Evaluation methods of clinical efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine / 中国中药杂志

Clinical efficacy is the basis for the development of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM), and the evaluation of clinical efficacy of TCM has always been the focus of attention. The technical and methodological difficulties in the evaluation process often restrict the generation of high-level evidence. Therefore, methodological research should be deepened and innovative practice should be carried out to study the application of scientific research methods in the evaluation of the advantages of TCM. After more than ten years of development, the clinical efficacy evaluation of TCM, on the basis of the initially classic placebo randomized controlled trials, has successively carried out a series of meaningful attempts and explorations in N-of-1 trials, cohort studies, case-control studies, cross-sectional studies, real world studies, narrative medicine studies, systematic evaluation, and other aspects, laying the foundation for the transformation of TCM from "experience" to "evidence". This paper focused on the clinical efficacy evaluation of TCM, summarized the main connotation and development status of efficacy evaluation indicators, standards, and methods, and put forward corresponding countermeasures and suggestions for the problems of indicator selection, standard formulation, and methodology optimization in the research process. It is clear that scientific and objective evaluation of the efficacy of TCM is an urgent problem to be solved at present.

[Application and significance of mixed methods research in traditional Chinese medicine and narrative medicine].

Since narrative medicine was introduced in China, it has been widely used in medical education and clinical practice. The research on narrative medicine in China is especially characterized by its combination with traditional Chinese medicine(TCM). At present, the research on narrative medicine in China is still in the stage of small-scale practicing and theory advocating. Besides, there is also a lack of guidance on experimental design methodology for clinical application, which leads to few high-quality studies in this field. The present study reviewed the current high-quality research on narrative medicine to discuss the value and prospects of mixed methods research in narrative medicine. In addition, the common design, application procedures, and notes of mixed methods research were explained to provide references for the extensive applications of narrative medicine in the medical field, especially TCM clinical practice, education, and scientific research.

[Narrative evidence-based medicine:a strategy for evaluation of clinical efficacy of Chinese medicine].

Rich experience of clinical diagnosis and treatment has been accumulated in the developmental history of Chinese medicine, and the efficacy has been increasingly accepted by the public. However, the evaluation of clinical efficacy is currently based more on scientific evidence instead of merely the changes of patient symptoms. In Chinese medicine, the changes of major disease indicators, patient symptoms, and pathogenesis are the major criteria for the evaluation of clinical efficacy. The lack of well-accepted and uniform criteria and the uncertainty of subjective evaluation limit the development of clinical Chinese medicine. Evidence-based medicine combines clinical skills with the current best evidence. Narrative medicine, utilizing people's narratives in clinical practice, emphasizes patient feelings, willingness, and value orientation. The introduction of both evidence-based medicine and narrative medicine into the evaluation of clinical efficacy refers to the construction of the clinical efficacy evaluation system in a paradigm of participatory diagnosis and treatment. It can fully reflect the characteristics of Chinese medicine, respect the values of patients, and achieve universal clinical evidence. Therefore, it helps to improve the diagnosis and treatment, the relationship between doctors and patients, patients' life quality and decision-making awareness, and finally the new evaluation model of clinical efficacy of Chinese medicine.

Exploring patient's experience and unmet needs on pregnancy and family planning in rare and complex connective tissue diseases: a narrative medicine approach.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this work is to explore patient' unmet needs of rare and complex rheumatic tissue diseases (rCTDs) patients during pregnancy and its planning by means of the narrative-based medicine (NBM) approach. METHODS: A panel of nine rCTDs patients' representatives was identified to codesign a survey aimed at collecting the stories of rCTD patients who had one or more pregnancies/miscarriages. The results of the survey and the stories collected were analysed and discussed with a panel of patients' representatives to identify unmet needs, challenges and possible strategies to improve the care of rCTD patients. RESULTS: 129 replies were collected, and 112 stories were analysed. Several unmet needs in the management of pregnancy in rCTDs were identified, such as fragmentation of care among different centres, lack of education and awareness on rCTD pregnancies among midwifes, obstetricians and gynaecologists. The lack of receiving appropriate information and education on rCTDs pregnancy was also highlighted by patients and their families. The need for a holistic approach and the availability specialised pregnancy clinics with a multidisciplinary organisation as well as the provision of psychological support during all the phases around pregnancy was considered also a priority. CONCLUSION: The adoption of the NBM approach enabled a direct identification of unmet needs, and a list of possible actions was elaborated to improve the care of rCTD patients and their families in future initiatives.

Narrative evidence-based medicine:a strategy for evaluation of clinical efficacy of Chinese medicine / 中国中药杂志

Rich experience of clinical diagnosis and treatment has been accumulated in the developmental history of Chinese medicine, and the efficacy has been increasingly accepted by the public. However, the evaluation of clinical efficacy is currently based more on scientific evidence instead of merely the changes of patient symptoms. In Chinese medicine, the changes of major disease indicators, patient symptoms, and pathogenesis are the major criteria for the evaluation of clinical efficacy. The lack of well-accepted and uniform criteria and the uncertainty of subjective evaluation limit the development of clinical Chinese medicine. Evidence-based medicine combines clinical skills with the current best evidence. Narrative medicine, utilizing people's narratives in clinical practice, emphasizes patient feelings, willingness, and value orientation. The introduction of both evidence-based medicine and narrative medicine into the evaluation of clinical efficacy refers to the construction of the clinical efficacy evaluation system in a paradigm of participatory diagnosis and treatment. It can fully reflect the characteristics of Chinese medicine, respect the values of patients, and achieve universal clinical evidence. Therefore, it helps to improve the diagnosis and treatment, the relationship between doctors and patients, patients' life quality and decision-making awareness, and finally the new evaluation model of clinical efficacy of Chinese medicine.

Application and significance of mixed methods research in traditional Chinese medicine and narrative medicine / 中国中药杂志

Since narrative medicine was introduced in China, it has been widely used in medical education and clinical practice. The research on narrative medicine in China is especially characterized by its combination with traditional Chinese medicine(TCM). At present, the research on narrative medicine in China is still in the stage of small-scale practicing and theory advocating. Besides, there is also a lack of guidance on experimental design methodology for clinical application, which leads to few high-quality studies in this field. The present study reviewed the current high-quality research on narrative medicine to discuss the value and prospects of mixed methods research in narrative medicine. In addition, the common design, application procedures, and notes of mixed methods research were explained to provide references for the extensive applications of narrative medicine in the medical field, especially TCM clinical practice, education, and scientific research.

Initiating narrative medicine into dental education: Opportunity, change, and challenge.

Recently, the patient-centered and comprehensive dental treatment are emphasized as the same important competency as traditional clinical skill training in dental education. It is a silver lining to reorganize current dental education and redefine the role of dentistry to dentist, patient, and society. Narrative medicine has emerged as a variant from medical humanities and takes inspiration from philosophy, literature, poetry, art, ethics, and social sciences. Narrative medicine adds humanistic care with empathy and listening to patients in daily care. In this article, we introduce the definition of narrative medicine, the concept of narrative dentistry, implementation of narrative medicine into dental education, and challenges in initiating narrative dentistry. During the current COVID-19 pandemic, it also affords the opportunity to initiate narrative medicine into dental education, dentist could emerge to heal patient holistically, but not simply eliminate oral diseases.

[Discussion on design of clinical trial scheme for doctor-patient co-construction of traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine under concept of narrative medicine].

With the continuous improvement of modern medical technology, medical practice has become more and more procedural. The medical process is often dominated by doctors, while the value orientation of patients is often ignored, lacking effective communication between doctors and patients. In response to this phenomenon, Charon R proposed the concept of narrative medicine, which has been recognized by all walks of life. In recent years, the value of medical humanism has attracted more attention, and the research on narrative medicine at home and abroad is increasing gradually. But at present, most of the research on narrative medicine is in terms of theory, lacking clinical research. How to make narrative medicine applied in the real world is the focus of current research. Following the concept of narrative medicine, and taking the study on doctor-patient parallel medical record to evaluate the real clinical efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) and Western medicine(WM) in the treatment of digestive diseases as an example, this study is to explore the design contents and key points of the clinical trial scheme of doctor-patient co-construction of TCM and WM under narrative medicine, and discuss the activity form and clinical efficacy evaluation method under narrative medicine. Clinical trial design includes four aspects: medicine, ethics, statistics and trial management. This study explored the design of the doctor-patient co-construction clinical trial scheme under narrative medicine from both theoretical and practical aspects, providing reference for the design and research of future doctor-patient co-construction scheme, and expecting to establish a better efficacy evaluation method of TCM and WM.

Declaração de óbito domiciliar na Atenção Primária à Saúde: acolhendo a morte no lar / Certificado de defunción domiciliaria en la Atención Primaria de la Salud: acogida de la muerte en el hogar / Home death certificate in Primary Health Care: welcoming death at home

A Atenção Primária à Saúde (APS) é um cenário capaz de produzir cuidado em todas as fases da vida, desde o nascer ao morrer. Porém, o cuidado de saúde de pessoas gravemente enfermas requer uma abordagem complexa e holística desses sujeitos e famílias, sendo muitas vezes prestado em domicílio. Uma das atribuições relacionadas aos cuidados em fim de vida é a emissão da declaração de óbito quando este ocorre em domicílio. Pela perspectiva de uma médica de Família e Comunidade, relatou-se, de modo narrativo e reflexivo, uma experiência de um atendimento domiciliar para emissão de declaração de óbito. A partir dessa narrativa, discutiu-se sobre como a visita para declaração de óbito nos convida a entrar em um território repleto de subjetividades, que nos evoca muitas reflexões sobre o processo de morte e morrer, provocando transformações em nossa vida pessoal e profissional.(AU)

La Atención Primaria de la Salud es un escenario capaz de producir cuidado en todas las fases de la vida, desde el nacimiento hasta la muerte. No obstante, el cuidado de la salud de personas gravemente enfermas requiere un abordaje complejo y holístico de esos sujetos y familias, siendo muchas veces realizada a domicilio. Una de las atribuciones relacionadas con los cuidados al final de la vida es la emisión del certificado de defunción, cuando la misma ocurre en el domicilio. Bajo la perspectiva de una médica deFamilia y Comunidad, se relató de modo narrativo y reflexivo una experiencia de una atención domiciliaria para emisión de certificado de defunción. A partir de esa narrativa, se discutió sobre cómo la visita para el certificado de defunción nos invita a entrar en un territorio repleto de subjetividades que nos evoca muchas reflexiones sobre el proceso de la muerte y el morir, causando transformaciones en nuestra vida personal y profesional.(AU)

Primary Health Care is a scenario capable of producing care at all stages of life, from birth to death. However, the health care of severely ill people requires a complex and holistic approach to these subjects and families, often being provided at home. One of the duties related to end-of-life care is the issuance of a death certificate when death occurs at home. From the perspective of a Family and Community doctor a narrative and reflective experience is reported by a home care service for issuing a death certificate. From this narrative we discussed how the visit for the issuance of the death certificate invites us into a territory full of subjectivities, which evokes many reflections on the process of death and dying, causing changes in our lives both personally and professionally.(AU)

The influence of narrative medicine on medical students' readiness for holistic care practice: a realist synthesis protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Holistic healthcare considers the whole person-their body, mind, spirit and emotions-and has been associated with narrative medicine practice. Narrative medicine is medicine performed with narrative skill and has been offered as a model for humanism and effective medical practice. Narrative medicine interventions have been associated with physicians' increased empathy and more meaningful interactions with patients about managing their illness and preventative medicine. However, while there is some evidence that certain groups are more open to narrative practices (eg, traditional vs Western medical students), the extent to which narrative medicine interventions during undergraduate medical education impacts on students' readiness for holistic care, as well as the underlying reasons why, is unknown. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Realist review is a theory-driven approach to evaluate complex interventions. It focuses on understanding how interventions and programmes work (or not) in their contextual setting. This realist synthesis aimed to formulate a theory around the influence of narrative medicine medical students' readiness for holistic care practice. We will follow Pawson's five steps: locate existing theories, search strategy, study selection, data extraction, data analysis and synthesis. We will use the following electronic databases: Web of Science, Medline, Scopus and Embase. Articles between January 2008 and September 2018 will be included. Results will be written according to the RAMESES (Realist And Meta-narrative Evidence Syntheses: Evolving Standards) standard for reporting realist syntheses. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics approval was obtained from the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital for the wider study. The findings of this review will provide useful information for academics and policymakers, who will be able to apply the findings in their context when deciding whether and how to introduce narrative medicine programmes into medical students' curricula. We will publish our findings in peer-reviewed journals and international conferences. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42018115447.

A glass of water.

In large cities, cancer management has moved to highly specialized centers that provide holistic care. Hence, freelance consultants very occasionally encounter cancer patients. Sometimes due to a variety of reasons, one may not have much to offer to a patient in terms of medical management. However, empathy and small acts of kindness can have a major impact on patients going through tough times and must be always remembered. A glass of water is a true narrative of how seemingly benign words can make a patient aloof when one least expects and how small acts of kindness can change their equation with the doctor. It reinforces the fact that the art of medicine is still the better half of the science of medicine and must be practiced at all times.

How do users adopt health information from social media? The narrative paradigm perspective.

INTRODUCTION: A recent trend in health information seeking and sharing is the use of social media. Although there are several benefits to the use of social media for health communication, the quality of health information exchanged on social media is troubling due to its informal, unregulated mechanisms for information collection, sharing and promotion. Therefore, it is important to understand how users adopt health information from social media. METHOD: Considering the user-generated and storytelling nature of social media messages, this research employed the narrative paradigm perspective to explain the social media health information adoption phenomenon. Specifically, narrative coherence (NC) and narrative fidelity (NF) were hypothesised to have positive effects on the intention to adopt (IA). Additionally, socio-economic status (SES) was viewed as a proxy variable to cognitive capability and was hypothesised to moderate the effects of NC and NF. A scenario-based survey was conducted to test the proposed research model. RESULTS: We obtained a total of 257 valid questionnaires. The results indicated that NF (p < 0.001) had a positive effect on the IA social media health information. The NC (p < 0.01) had no impact on the low SES users but a positive impact on the high SES users. Further, the effect of NF (p < 0.01) on the IA was higher for high SES users than low SES users. CONCLUSIONS: NC and NF are two major driving forces in social media health information adoption, and the effect of both narrative paradigm variables depends on the SES users. IMPLICATIONS: Results of this study show how the narrative paradigm, with a focus on the storytelling method of communication rather than logical scientific argument, can not only explain the uptake of health messages from social media, but also provide guidance as to how to create health messages on social media that more effectively target end users.

Implementing a Narrative Medicine Curriculum During the Internship Year: An Internal Medicine Residency Program Experience.

INTRODUCTION: Narrative medicine develops professional and communication skills that align with Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education competencies. However, little is known about a narrative medicine curriculum's impact on physicians in training during residency. Implementing a narrative medicine curriculum during residency can be challenging because of time constraints and limited opportunity for nonclinical education. METHODS: Six sessions were implemented throughout one academic year to expose first-year internal medicine residents (interns) to narrative medicine. Attendance and participation were documented. At the end of the year, interns completed an open-ended survey to gauge their perception of their experience with the sessions. RESULTS: In total, 17 interns attended at least 1 narrative medicine session, and each session averaged 5.4 attendees. Thirteen eligible interns completed the survey. Thematic analysis identified 3 predominant themes: Mindfulness, physician well-being, and professionalism. DISCUSSION: Overall, the narrative medicine sessions were well attended and the curriculum was well received. This intervention demonstrates the value of a narrative medicine curriculum during medical resident training. Large prospective studies are necessary to identify the long-term benefits of such a curriculum.

A Narrative Approach to Healing Chronic Illness.

Many clinicians may feel poorly prepared to manage patient suffering resulting from the travails of chronic illness. This essay explores the thesis that chronically and terminally ill patients can be holistically healed by transcending the suffering occasioned by the degradations of their illnesses. Suffering is conveyed as a story and clinicians can encourage healing by co-constructing patients' illness stories. By addressing the inevitable existential conflicts uncovered in patients' narratives and helping them edit their stories to promote acceptance and meaning, suffering can be transcended. This requires that clinicians be skilled in narrative medicine and open to engaging the patient's existential concerns. By helping patients transcend their suffering, clinicians claim their heritage as healers.

The Art of Healing through Narrative Medicine in Clinical Practice: A Reflection.

The art of medicine has roots that lie deep in developing the biopsychosocial connection. Understanding a human body (both its physiology and pathology) along with components of emotional and spiritual cores can lead to provision of excellent medical care and better outcomes. The harmonization of psychosocial consequences of a biological disease is helpful not just for health care professionals but also for patients. Where it keeps the empathy and compassion alive and results in greater patient satisfaction, it also helps boost the physician's morale.Our objective is to reflect on the impact of narrative medicine on physician-patient dynamics for health care professionals in a clinical setting. This article was written after synthesizing the findings of evidence-based literature, retrieved from different sources, along with our own reflections on our encounters with patients.One could infer from the evidence-based research that the practice of narrative medicine improves one's concern and understanding toward the patient. This requires more time from the clinician, but medical care without compassion and humaneness causes high rates of dissatisfaction among both patients and health care practitioners, along with the risk of recurrent ailments. Our own patient encounters provide a testimony to this inference. The biopsychosocial model carries the same holistic approach toward patients. The mainstay of treatment in any domain of medicine should contain thoughtfulness for the sufferer rather than sole consideration of the suffering.

Narrative Medicine perspectives on patient identity and integrative care in neuro-oncology.

Narrative Medicine sessions can encourage patients to rediscover personal identity and meaning by telling or writing their stories. We explored this process to improve care and quality of life for brain cancer patients in an academic neuro-oncology program. Brain cancer and its treatments may threaten a patient's quality of life and sense of self in many ways, including impaired cognitive skills, loss of memory, reduced coordination, and limited capacity for self-expression. The impact of symptoms and side effects on quality of life must be evaluated in terms of each patient's identity and may be understood in terms of each patient's story. Insights from Narrative Medicine visits may also be helpful for the treatment team as they seek to assess patient needs, attitudes, and abilities. We provide case-based histories demonstrating applications of Narrative Medicine in the care of patients with brain tumors whose sense of self and quality of life are challenged. The cases include managing frontal lobe syndrome of loss of initiative and pervasive emotional apathy with his wife and young children, regaining a meaningful activity in a patient, re-establishing self-identity in a young woman with ependymoma, and improving spells with coexistent epilepsy and psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES).

Different perceptions of narrative medicine between Western and Chinese medicine students.

BACKGROUND: Western medicine is an evidence-based science, whereas Chinese medicine is more of a healing art. To date, there has been no research that has examined whether students of Western and Chinese medicine differentially engage in, or benefit from, educational activities for narrative medicine. This study fills a gap in current literature with the aim of evaluating and comparing Western and Chinese Medicine students' perceptions of narrative medicine as an approach to learning empathy and professionalism. METHODS: An initial 10-item questionnaire with a 5-point Likert scale was developed to assess fifth-year Western medical (MS) and traditional Chinese medical (TCMS) students' perceptions of a 4-activity narrative medicine program during a 13-week internal medicine clerkship. Exploratory factor analysis was undertaken. RESULTS: The response rate was 88.6% (412/465), including 270 (65.5%) MSs and 142 (34.5%) TCMSs, with a large reliability (Cronbach alpha = 0.934). Three factors were extracted from 9 items: personal attitude, self-development/reflection, and emotional benefit, more favorable in terms of enhancement of self-development/reflection. The perceptions of narrative medicine by scores between the two groups were significantly higher in TCMSs than MSs in all 9-item questionnaire and 3 extracted factors. CONCLUSIONS: Given the different learning cultures of medical education in which these student groups engage, this suggests that undertaking a course in Chinese medicine might enhance one's acceptance to, and benefit from, a medical humanities course. Alternatively, Chinese medicine programmes might attract more humanities-focused students.