Jade Bonanno, a researcher at the University of Fribourg’s Institute of Family Medicine, is investigating the feasibility of integrating complementary therapies into geriatric care in hospitals. Conducted simultaneously at the Acute Care Unit for Seniors at the Ensemble Hospitalier de la Côte and in the Geriatrics and Rehabilitation Department at the Geneva University Hospitals, her study could be a first step towards the inclusion of integrative medicine in hospital care.
Next to her doctoral research, Jade Bonanno has been conducting an exploratory study for nearly a year on the feasibility of integrating complementary therapies into geriatric care in hospitals. Funded by the Leenaards Foundation, this study was inspired by an observation made by Dr Nicole Doser, head physician at the Ensemble Hospitalier de la Côte (EHC): regardless of the reason for hospitalisation, almost all elderly patients present one or more common symptoms, namely pain, anxiety, or sleep disorders. Keen to improve their well-being and experience in the hospital, the doctor wished to offer patients different therapies in addition to their main treatment in order to relieve these symptoms. Her ambition was therefore to open the door to integrative medicine, which consists precisely of combining conventional treatments with complementary care.
This led to the creation of the Integr’age project, led by Jade Bonanno at the Institute of Family Medicine at the University of Fribourg. The project has been running since July 2024 and is being carried out in two geriatric departments: the Acute Care Unit for Seniors at the EHC in Morges and the Geriatric and Rehabilitation Department at the Geneva University Hospitals (HUG). At each site, a coordinator acts as an intermediary between therapists, nursing staff, and patients, ensuring that the proposed complementary therapies are properly implemented. There are eight such therapies, all of which were selected for the study because of their very low risk of side effects and lack of interaction with medication, an essential criterion in the context of a patient population that is generally on multiple medications. It should be noted, however, that in the context of this study, complementary medicine therapies do not replace the conventional treatments prescribed to patients.
Involving patients in their recovery
The active participation of patients is an essential component of this study, which is why the coordinators take the time to individually present the different treatments available to them. "It's very important that patients are actively involved in their own care," explains Jade Bonanno. "This project works by taking their preferences into account, based on their understanding of their own symptoms and what can be done to address them." To help them make their choice, the coordinators provide participants with explanatory brochures on the therapies and a decision-making tool presenting the approaches that can be used for each symptom. After validation by the doctor, the chosen treatment is provided by a dedicated therapist, a member of the healthcare team, or the coordinator herself, depending on the type of therapy.
"It should be borne in mind that this is an observational study and that the effects of the proposed treatments are not systematically compared with those of conventional treatments or with no treatment (placebo)," the researcher points out. Moreover, each therapy has its own specificities, making it difficult to compare them with each other. This is why the study does not focus on their effectiveness, but rather on the feasibility of integrating them into hospital care. To conduct this analysis, Jade Bonanno collects various data using questionnaires completed by healthcare staff at three stages of the study and by patients at the beginning, end, and two months after their hospitalisation. The responses collected from the 85 participants included in the study so far show their enthusiasm for being offered complementary therapies, particularly for pain relief, the most commonly reported symptom.
An opening for integrative medicine in hospitals
The study was also very well received by the healthcare staff, the vast majority of whom already had a positive view of integrative medicine even before the project began. "They believe it is important to integrate complementary therapies at the hospital," says Jade Bonanno, "as these therapies help to establish a relationship of trust with patients as well as to respect their needs and beliefs, facilitate the care process, and potentially reduce medication." Some people had even already undergone training in this field and are delighted to be able to put these skills to good use.
The preliminary results of the Integr’age study suggest that integrative care could be implemented on a long-term basis in geriatric hospitals. Jade Bonanno hopes that the measures put in place as part of the project can be maintained in the two departments concerned after July 2025, when the study ends. "I think this will be the case," she says, "although the presence of coordinators is currently a prerequisite for it to work."
More broadly, the desired outcome of this study would be to pave the way for similar projects in other departments by demonstrating that integrative medicine has a place in hospitals. "We know that the Swiss population is quite receptive to complementary therapies," states the scientist, "so why not offer them in a hospital setting?" The idea is all the more relevant given that, by responding more broadly to patients' needs, complementary care has the potential to speed up their recovery and thus reduce the costs of conventional treatments. "We are people before we are disorders," concludes Jade Bonanno, "so I think it makes sense to offer care that goes beyond the disorder itself. "
Jade Bonanno
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