As an epicenter of alternative medicine, Boulder has always been at the forefront of embracing new therapeutics and ways of healing. We are living at a time of momentous change in our health care system due to three major currents:
- Our existing Western health care system is becoming cost prohibitive as the crisis-based model is leaving many Americans without health care and exorbitant hospital bills.
- The for-profit model of health care has left physicians rushed to see as many patients as possible, which can often leave a patient dissatisfied when they are not seen as an individual and only a disease diagnosis.
- Advancements in science during the last decade have convinced even the most skeptical rationalists that the mind-body connection is real. Many of the previously considered fringe elements of medicine are now being openly embraced from acupuncture to yoga, from nutrition to meditation by the top medical schools from Harvard to Columbia.
What is Integrative Medicine?
Integrative medicine is the philosophy of approaching each individual’s health by looking at the whole person, treating both the person and the disease. The approach is treat the body, mind and spirit as a contiguous whole while seeking to support each person in engaging their optimal level of health. While the methodology behind some of the modalities may be unconventional, the guiding principle behind even the subtler therapies is that there is a functional medical component that has quality evidence to support its use.
Integrative Medicine seeks to meld the evidence based approach of Western Medicine with the whole person perspective of alternative medicine, thereby creating a hybrid model that is based on the functional outcome of superior health. This approach finds less side effects when used in concert with traditional western medication, faster recuperation from surgery and the eventual goal of optimal health that is self-maintained.
How is Integrative Medicine practiced at the Mandala Clinic in Boulder unique?
Our integrative medicine clinic is a progressive model of integrative care. Our foundation is based on working with the lifestyles of our clients to create a foundation for them that will improve their health over time. We often start with a consultation with our nutritionist or Naturopathic doctor to create a customized diet. We pay close attention to the lifestyle of our clients and often counsel practices to support them in their health transition. We maintain a full herbal and nutraceutical pharmacy at our integrative medicine clinic and work closely with our staff of herbalists and Chinese Medicine practitioners to help our clients take supplements that both support their health and correct underlying deficiencies and long term health imbalances. Our acupuncturists align the resources of the body so that repair and rejuvenation of the body, mind and spirit can proceed optimally. We use bodywork and energetic modalities to support long-term well being and longevity as well as soften the edge of higher stress lifestyles. On the occasion, when degeneration of the body can not access its ability to heal in a timely manner, we do not hesitate to cooperate with conventional Western medicine to create health care plans that serve our patients.
At the Mandala Integrative Medicine Clinic in Boulder, our promise to you is to take the time to understand you as an individual and provide the attention and intention necessary to create a health care plan that has your optimal health and growth in mind.
– Marco Chung-Shu Lam, Mandala Integrative Medicine Clinic Director, March 8, 2009