The National Centre for
Complementary and Alternative Medicine, a division of the National
Institutes of Health, says Reiki appears to be generally safe and no serious
side effects have been reported. It also says more than 2.2 million U.S. adults
have used it.
Among
Reiki's fans are cardiac surgeon and TV show host Dr. Mehmet Oz, who recently urged viewers to try it. "This alternative
medicine treatment can manipulate your energy and cure what ails you,"
Dr. Scott
Treatman, Crouse's director of employee health, said Crouse's patient surveys
suggest Reiki helps patients.
Crouse
surveyed 390 patients, who received Reiki between January, 2008, and December,
2009. Patients were asked to rank their stress levels before and after
treatments on a scale of 0 to 5, with 0 being no stress and 5 being high
stress. They also ranked their pain before and after treatments. The average
patient's stress score was 2.77 before Reiki and .97 after Reiki. The average patient's
pain score was .99 before Reiki and .78 after.
"The
evidence, although it's not in peer-reviewed journals, speaks for itself,"
Treatman said. "We're not only in the business of yanking out
gallbladders, but also making the patients' experience here more
comfortable."
Michael
North, a chronic pain patient at the VA Medical Centre, swears by Reiki.
North,
54, of Tully, suffers from pain related to lower back and neck problems. The
U.S. Coast Guard veteran has had three surgeries over the past 24 years.
North has
tried painkillers, but they don't help. He said he has a hard time relaxing.
North said Reiki is the only thing that eases his anxiety. He got his first
treatment in 2001 from Nancy J. Barnum, a nurse practitioner in the VA's pain
clinic.
"Within
a matter of minutes after barely touching my forehead, all of a sudden it felt
like every problem just flushed out of me," North said. "I couldn't
believe it."
Barnum
said learning how to relax is a key strategy for chronic pain patients like
North. Medication, behavioural therapy and other relaxation techniques don't
work for some patients. For those people, alternatives like Reiki are sometimes
more helpful, she said.
"If
you can help someone to manage their stress level and induce more of a relaxation
response, the pain becomes more bearable," Barnum said.
Reiki, long available in the community from
private practitioners and through some medical practices, is gaining more
traction in hospitals. A few nurses began offering Reiki at Crouse seven years ago.
As patient interest in the alternative therapy increased the hospital
formalized the program. "Administration said, 'If patients are benefiting
from it, why would we not do it,'" said Bob Allen, a Crouse vice
president.