Integrative Medicine in Hospitals and Academic Centers: What Is Offered

What this page covers

Many large hospitals, cancer centers and universities run "integrative medicine" or "whole health" programs. This page explains the term, what such programs are described as offering in the sources we read, and how strong the evidence is. We do not list, rank or recommend any program. Information only; it does not replace medical care.

What "integrative" means

Definitions differ, and the difference matters.

• NCCIH (part of the US National Institutes of Health) says integrative health brings conventional and complementary approaches together in a coordinated way. [1] It calls an approach "complementary" when used together with conventional medicine and "alternative" when used in place of it. [1]
• The National Cancer Institute describes integrative medicine as combining conventional medicine with complementary practices that have shown through science to be safe and effective. [2] That wording builds an evidence test into the definition; NCCIH's does not.
• NCCIH adds that "functional medicine" sometimes means something like integrative health and sometimes something closer to naturopathy. [1]

We could not read the definition published by the Academic Consortium for Integrative Medicine & Health (its site returned an access error), so we do not quote it.

What programs are described as offering

Cancer centers. NCCIH says cancer treatment centers with integrative programs may offer services such as acupuncture and meditation to help manage symptoms. [1] It adds that research on the value of these programs is at an early stage, with some promising results. [1] The guideline evidence is on our page about integrative oncology guidelines.

Pain care. NCCIH states that a growing body of evidence suggests some complementary approaches, such as acupuncture, massage, mindfulness, tai chi and yoga, may help manage some painful conditions. [3] It also notes that these approaches have good safety records but are not risk-free for everyone. [3]

A hospital survey, now old. In 2010, Health Forum (an American Hospital Association subsidiary) and the Samueli Institute surveyed 5,858 hospitals and received 714 replies, a 12% response rate. [4] More than 42% of responding hospitals said they offered at least one complementary therapy, up from 37% in 2007. [4] Massage was in the top two services in both outpatient and inpatient settings. [4] Most respondents also offered wellness services such as nutritional counseling, smoking cessation and fitness training. [4] Hospitals gave patient demand as the main reason (85%), and 75% named budget limits as the biggest obstacle. [4] Two cautions: the replies came from a minority of hospitals, and the release describes the Samueli Institute as a non-profit research organization that investigates healing oriented practices. [4] We found no more recent national count in our search.

Veterans' care. The US Department of Veterans Affairs runs a "Whole Health" approach that centers on what matters to you, not on what is the matter with you. [5] Its health team works with each veteran on a personalized health plan, and VA says a range of services may be available at the local facility. [5]

What the evidence shows about programs

Proper evidence not found: studies showing that people treated at a hospital or academic center with an integrative program have better overall outcomes than comparable people treated at one without. We searched PubMed for hospital and academic-center integrative programs with surveys and outcomes, read the NCCIH, NCI, AHA and VA pages above, and found services studied one at a time and observational veteran studies, but no such comparison.

Cost, access and uptake

A commentary on the cancer-pain guideline names barriers to use: lack of insurance coverage for many complementary therapies, and limited diversity and availability of providers. [9] A 2026 review says implementation of the SIO-ASCO oncology guidelines in routine practice remains limited. [10] We give no prices; ask the program for its fees and what insurance covers.

Who delivers the care

The sources above do not describe the training of staff in hospital programs. Physicians, nurses, acupuncturists, massage therapists and others may be involved, and titles, licenses and scope differ by state and country. See credentials, titles and scope of practice.

Questions to ask any program

• Which of your services have guideline or trial support for my condition, and which are comfort or wellness add-ons?
• Who provides each service, and what training and license do they hold?
• Will my primary doctor or specialist see my records, and will you review my medicines and supplements?
• What does each service cost, what does insurance cover, and are supplements or products sold here?
• How do I report a problem? (See reporting complaints and adverse events.)

More ideas are in questions to ask an integrative practitioner and how to evaluate a proposed treatment plan.