Complementary and alternative therapies in nursing curricula: a new direction for nurse educators

The scope of nursing practice is expanding to include the use of complementary and alternative therapies (CAT). This expansion is occurring because of changes in professional and societal attitudes toward the use of such therapies. In this article, we discuss the use of CAT and the development of medical and nursing educational programs related to these therapies in Eastern and Western societies. In addition, we identify future directions for incorporating content on such therapies into nursing education programs in the United States. We suggest that undergraduate nursing programs need to introduce the philosophy of Oriental medicine and content on some of the common therapies and that graduate nursing programs that include content on the use of CAT in nursing practice can possibly be developed.