What led health professionals to study and practise acupuncture in Spain?

Abstract

Acupuncture is the most widespread practice of Traditional Chinese Medicine in the Western world. This confers special relevance to the experiences and circumstances of life to explain the health-illness process. Recent research has reported an increasing interest of Western health professionals in its practice. The aim of this study was to map and understand the motivation of health professionals to study and practise acupuncture in Spain. A total of 27 in-depth interviews were conducted with Spanish health professionals trained in acupuncture. Participants were selected following a theoretical sampling. Grounded theory dimensional analysis guided this research in order to obtain a theoretical explanation of the motivations of health professionals to study and practise acupuncture. Their motivations were focused on six categories: humanisation of medicine, acquiring additional therapeutic resources, efficacy and far-reaching healing potential of acupuncture, attraction to acupuncture philosophy, external influences (other professionals and relevant sources of information) and work-related motivation. Our results show that health professionals were attracted to acupuncture because of the Traditional Chinese Medicine worldview (a philosophical approach) and therapeutic benefits of acupuncture (a practical approach). Acupuncture offers the possibility to improve the healthcare assistance by transcending the reification of human beings resulting from the pre-eminence of the biomedical paradigm and facilitating cooperation between disciplines. Participants consider acupuncture as a complete medicine, not merely as a technique, and highlight the importance of traditional Chinese concepts to practise it.