Using narrative analysis to understand the combined use of complementary therapies and bio-medically oriented health care

• Published in: Social science & medicine (1982) 2007-10, Vol.65 (8), p.1642-1653
• Main Authors: Hök, Johanna, Wachtler, Caroline, Falkenberg, Torkel, Tishelman, Carol
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Alternative Medicine; Analysis; Anecdotes as Topic; Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical research; Biomedicine; Cancer; Complementary Therapies; Doctor-patient relationship; Doctor-Patient relationships; Female; Folkhälsovetenskap, global hälsa, socialmedicin och epidemiologi; Health care; Health Sciences; Humans; Hälsovetenskap; Integrative health care; Male; Medical and Health Sciences; Medical sciences; Medical sociology; Medical treatment; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Miscellaneous; Narrative analysis; Narratives; Neoplasms - drug therapy; Neoplasms - therapy; Practitioner Patient Relationship; Professional-Family Relations; Public Health, Global Health, Social Medicine and Epidemiology; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Self Care; Self Care - methods; Selfcare; Stockholm, Sweden; Sweden; Sweden Complementary therapies Narrative analysis Cancer Professional-family relations Integrative health care; Therapy
• ISSN: 0277-9536; 1873-5347; 1873-5347
• DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2007.05.031

Rather than using different therapies in isolation, many cancer patients use different therapies in a complementary fashion. Little research to date has given attention to individuals’ experiences of the combined use of biomedically oriented health care (BHC) and complementary and alternative therapies (CATs). Therefore, this paper examines one individual's negotiation between complementary self-care methods and BHC in the treatment of cancer in Stockholm, Sweden. Using narrative analysis, we explore how a personal narrative is told, in addition to what is told, in order to see how the meaning of the negotiation between different therapies is created. Our analysis suggests that the BHC retains a vital role as a frame of reference for the use of certain CATs. It is also apparent how one CAT can be used for different purposes simultaneously by one individual. A positive example is given of how a spouse interpreted his experience of successful communication about CATs with a BHC provider as indicative of a shift from a hierarchical to a more collaborative relationship. Such increased collaboration between stakeholders is an important aspect of models of ‘integrative health care’. Our findings highlight the need for an open and respectful dialogue about CATs between patients, their significant others and BHC providers.