The Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Maryland: The first complementary and alternative medicine center in a US medical school

Abstract

The Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Maryland was founded in 1991 and was the first center dedicated to evaluating complementary and alternative medicine at a US medical school. The center has been a National Institutes of Health center of excellence since 1995 focused on evaluating the efficacy, safety and mechanism of action of traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture, and mind-body modalities including Qigong and mindfulness meditation. The Center functions as an interdisciplinary center in the university and is composed of four main areas - research, patient care, informatics, and education - that mutually enhance each other and create a cohesive unit. The Center has recently increased its international collaboration on acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine research, particularly with universities in China such as Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and other TCM universities.