Tammy Sajdyk, MS, PhD, associate director of Translational Research Development program and IUPUI campus navigator at the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI), is part of the steering committee of a new Indiana University School of Medicine initiative: the Indiana Consortium for Integrative Medicine and Health (ICIMH).
The steering committee brings together faculty from across the state of Indiana, IU School of Medicine, and the IU Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center to support the ICIMH’s commitment to build a multi-disciplinary Integrative health center of excellence within the state that promotes integrative medicine approaches to clinical care, offers education and training in integrative medicine, conducts research, and connects patients to outstanding, innovative, and personalized health care.
“Having a new Academic Consortium on Integrative Medicine and Health here in Indiana will allow investigators all across the state who conduct integrative approaches to have a home and a place to find collaborators with similar interests,” Sadjyk said.
IU was accepted as a member of the Academic Consortium for Integrative Medicine and Health in March 2022.
In addition to Sajdyk, an associate professor of clinical pediatrics at IU School of Medicine, the consortium’s steering committee includes the school’s Antwione M Haywood, MED, PhD, assistant dean for student affairs; Jennifer A M Stone, MSOM, Lac; Tamara S Hannon, MD, professor of pediatrics; Rana S. Berry, MD, MPH, assistant professor of clinical obstetrics and gynecology; and Niki Munk, PhD, LMT, associate professor of health sciences in the School of Health and Human Sciences.
The consortium is the result of work done by researchers who began studying the effects of integrative medicine at IU in the 1990s, as well as 2015 changes in guidelines by the Joint Commission in response to the ongoing opioid epidemic.
“The changed guidelines require that Joint Commission-certified hospitals recommend non-pharmacological care first before prescribing opiates,” Stone said. Ultimately, the consortium hopes to see “whole person” health practices embraced more widely by Hoosiers.
“We have plans to develop an integrated medicine elective similar to the one that IU offered in the 90s, as well as plan to host an annual in-person event,” Stone said. “We’re also developing an RFP to offer seed funding for pilot projects. Currently, we’re focusing on capacity building, growing our membership and partnerships.”
Monthly meetings of the consortium will be held the third Thursday of the month through 2024 and will each include opportunities for information sharing, dialogue, and two 10-minute introductory presentations from consortium affiliates engaged in complementary and integrative medicine research, education, or clinical practice. Register to attend the June meeting.
Those interested can subscribe to ICIMH communications or visit their website to learn more.
