Homeopathy & St. Marien Childrens hospital
Anecdotal and scientific evidence supports integrative approaches in pediatrics
The clinical use of integrative approaches in pediatrics has increased over the past two decades, and parents are willing to travel to obtain specialized integrative medical care for their children with severe and chronic disease. This demand, in Europe, led to hospitals and departments delivering integrative approaches with specializations in complementary and alternative (CAM) such as the Kinderkrankenhaus St. Marien (St. Marien Childrens hospital).1
German parents report high demand, and willingness to pay, for CAM in hospitals;2
This 2018 survey of more than 1300 German parents found:
Eighty percent of parents endorsed expansion of CAM across German hospitals.
Homeopathy was the CAM most desired by parents.
Forty percent already implemented CAM for their children - homeopathy, the most frequent, by almost sixty percent of surveyed parents.
Kinderkrankenhaus St. Marien (St. Marien’s) located in Landshut, Germany, has an established integrative medicine department where CAM is applied in both inpatient and outpatient settings in addition to conventional medical treatments, and includes Traditional Chinese Medicine, homeopathy, and herbal medicine.
St. Marien’s, an academic teaching hospital equipped with 120 beds, treats an average of 6500 children on the wards and 16,000 children in the specialized outpatient departments annually, and contributes to scientific insights on the CAM modalities used.
Homeopathy, which has a long history at St. Marien’s, and many other CAM treatment modalities are integrated into the everyday care of children. The applied CAM modalities were selected by identifying evidence-based knowledge, and experience within the hospital.3 Classical homeopathy aka single-remedy-homeopathy is also integrated into routine pediatric services at the Dr. von Hauner’s Children’s University hospital in Munich.4
The cost effectiveness of integrative approaches over time has been demonstrated, with evidence of cost-effectiveness and possible cost savings in at least a few clinical populations, and allowing families access through insurance plans.5 Both anecdotal and scientific evidence supports the use of integrative approaches in the context of pediatrics.6
In Switzerland, many pediatricians and family physicians offer an integrative approach to their patients based on additional CAM training which ensures a full and competent medical care.7 The introduction of anthroposophic treatments in a Swiss teaching hospital were well-accepted, with high parent satisfaction. The additional insurance reimbursements outweighed the costs, and the program expanded into a center for integrative pediatrics.8
Fetz et al., 2019. Do patients of integrative anthroposophic pediatric inpatient departments differ? Comparative analysis to all pediatric inpatients in Germany considering demographic and clinical characteristics. BMC Public Health. Dec 3;19(1):1623. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6889203/
Anheyer et al., 2021. Integrative pediatrics survey: Parents report high demand and willingness to self-pay for complementary and integrative medicine in German hospitals. Complement Ther Med. Aug;60:102757. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34246995/
Eckert et al., 2018. Integrative Pediatrics: Successful Implementation of Integrative Medicine in a German Hospital Setting-Concept and Realization. Children (Basel). Sep 4;5(9):122. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6162590/
Kruse S, Schönauer A, Dorcsi-Ulrich M, Rosenecker J. Which role does homeopathy play in the project “integrative pediatrics” at three children’s hospitals in Germany? Allg Homöopath Ztg. 2017;262:KF02–KF01. Available from: https://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?journal=Allg+Hom%C3%B6opath+Ztg&title=Which+role+does+homeopathy+play+in+the+project+%E2%80%9Cintegrative+pediatrics%E2%80%9D+at+three+children%E2%80%99s+hospitals+in+Germany?&author=S+Kruse&author=A+Sch%C3%B6nauer&author=M+Dorcsi-Ulrich&author=J+Rosenecker&volume=262&publication_year=2017&pages=KF02-KF01&
Herman et al., 2012. Are complementary therapies and integrative care cost-effective? A systematic review of economic evaluations. BMJ Open. Sep 3;2(5):e001046. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3437424/
Roth et al., 2019. Employing Evidence in Evaluating Complementary Therapies: Findings from an Ethnography of Integrative Pain Management at a Large Urban Pediatric Hospital. J Altern Complement Med. Mar;25(S1):S95-S105. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6446163/
Huber BM, Rodondi PY, Wildhaber J. 2020. La pédiatrie intégrative fait partie intégrante des soins pédiatriques en Suisse [Pediatric integrative medicine is an integral part of child health care in Switzerland]. Rev Med Suisse. Nov 25;16(716):2289-2292. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33237648/
von Schoen-Angerer et al., 2018. Acceptance, satisfaction and cost of an integrative anthroposophic program for pediatric respiratory diseases in a Swiss teaching hospital: An implementation report. Complement Ther Med. Oct;40:179-184. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30219445/