The Medicine of the Manuka

Abstract

As nursing moves into the next paradigm of health care, there is an increasing shift toward integrative health care that is founded on the integration of traditional or complementary medicines alongside biomedicine. As part of the shift nurses are increasingly observing clients accessing traditional forms of medicine. One such product that has been used for hundreds of years and is more recently being incorporated into nursing care is the honey produced by bees pollinating Leptospermum scoparium, traditionally known as Manuka. Manuka honey is currently used widely in wound care and as a topical antibacterial, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory. Review of the literature supports a very effective and low-risk botanical intervention that is both cost-effective and easily accessible. There is future scope for the use of L. scoparium oil products in nursing and potential for further research to continue to discover its effectiveness.