Toward a Meaningful Alternative Medicine

Synopsis:

Abstract:  At a time when medicine is increasingly pulled toward both evidence-based and alternative medicine, a number of philosophical issues arise, but they are all concerned with our conception of good health and the healthy life. I will argue that there is a unique way to think of alternative medicine, a way to preserve it in the midst of the evidence-based movement. We should move toward a rich and meaningful philosophy of meditative medicine.

Prasad provides an interesting discussion on calculative versus meditative medicine with the hope that the western medical model can move away from the dualism that isolates alternative medicine.  He argues that more and more people are practicing meditatve medicine on their own; engaging in activity or habits that make them feel healthier and lead to a healthy life, rather than enaging in such acts because there is a documented and calculated benefit.  This article is philisophically based and a very interesting read.

Source:

The Hasting Center Report

Vol/Page/Date:

2009 September-October

Resource Type:

Webpage

Journal Article

Author/Source:

Vinay Prasad