Touch Therapies
Andrea Hammond, Sharon Hendon,
Stacey Klein, Angel Schneider
Purpose
• To explore alternative, nonpharmacological
methods that could provide better
management of pain, fatigue, and anxiety in
our patients.
Research Question
• Is there a sufficient amount of valid research
on touch therapies (Therapeutic Touch,
Healing Touch, and Reiki) to consider
utilization as an EBNP?
What are Touch Therapies?
• Touch therapy is based on the assumption that all
human beings are surrounded by a universal
energy field. When there is an imbalance in
energy, illness can result.
– This imbalance can be treated by trained
practitioners.
– Therapeutic Touch (TT) has been used since 1973 to
reduce anxiety, accelerate time of wound healing,
decrease pain and anxiety, and accelerate relaxation
in those who are ill.
• As of 2000, 90 countries practice TT throughout
the world (Coppa, p. 17).
Theorist
• The nursing theory by Martha Rogers supports
this view.
• “Rogers postulates that the human and
environmental fields are identified by wave
patterns, and that change is propagated by
waves. Nursing interventions such as TT are
directed towards promoting the rhythmic flow
of energy waves that order and re-order the
human field (Aghabati, p. 376).
Touch Therapy-The Beginning
• Reiki was conceived by Buddhist monk Mikao
Usui in 1914.
• Therapeutic Touch was co-founded by Dora
Kunz and Dolores Krieger in 1973.
• Healing touch was founded by Janet Mentgen
in the 1980s.
Primary Research Articles
•
“The Effect of Therapeutic Touch on Pain and Fatigue of Cancer Patients
Undergoing Chemotherapy” (Aghabati, Mohammadi, & Esmaiel, 2008)
– The researchers studied 90 cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy in an
experimental study. The patients were split into 3 groups of 30 each. A control
no treatment group, a placebo group, and a therapeutic touch group.
– The results found that the patients who received TT experienced less pain and
fatigue than the other 2 groups of patients.
•
“The Internal Process of Therapeutic Touch” (Coppa, 2008)
– The researchers used a descriptive qualitative design to study TT between the
nurse and the client. Each nurse had one adult and one infant client that they
treated. The researchers stood back and only observed the treatments, there
was no interaction between the researcher and the clients. Detailed notes
were taken during this observation.
Primary Research Articles
•
“The Effect of Therapeutic Touch on Postoperative Patients” (Coakley & Duffy,
2010)
– The researchers studied 21 vascular surgery postoperative patients from post-op days 1-7 to
determine if TT is effective in reducing post-op pain and stress after surgery.
– This study measured the level of pain and blood levels of cortisol and natural killer cells (NKC)
before and after each TT treatment.
– This study found that the patients receiving TT reported a lower level of pain and blood levels
of cortisol and NKC were also decreased.
•
“Effects of Healing Touch on Stress Perception and Biological Correlates” (Maville,
Bowen, & Benham, 2008)
– The researchers used a quantitative, quasi-experimental design to study the effect of healing
touch on anxiety and physiological measures of blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension and
skin temperature in health adults.
– After the data was collected and reviewed, the researchers concluded that healing touch
promotes relaxation and stress reduction. The results showed a decrease in the physiological
parameters during and after treatments.
How the Evidence is Effected by Your
Experience
• Point of View
– The evidence in any literature review is affected by the
nurses personal experience, patient preferences, and
nursing values. Some of our group members have positive
personal experience with touch therapies, while others
remain skeptical.
– Patient preferences need to be taken into consideration.
Some patients enjoy a relaxing back rub, while others do
not.
– Our nursing values provide a framework for each of us to
work in while caring for patients. We need to use the
policies and procedures put in place by our institutions, as
well as the scope of nursing as described by the American
Nurses Association.
Assumptions
• Our point of view is shaped by the assumptions we
have. Whether we have personal experience with a
given modality or not, we are still shaped by what we
assume to be true regarding its use in our practice.
• Two opposing assumptions are present in our group.
One member assumes that western medicine fails to
help all patients and there is definitely a place for
eastern medicine along with current practice to treat
the whole patient. Another member assumes that
touch therapy would not be effective based on her
skepticism of eastern medicine.
Implications and Consequences
• There are significant implications to allowing
our point of view and assumptions to direct
our review of literature. If we are to move
ahead with best practice nursing we must set
aside our biases and review the literature
objectively.
• The modality of TT is “an intervention, not a
cure. TT is very low tech, low cost, and within
the scope of nursing practice” (Coakley, p. 3).
Recommendations
• The four primary research articles that we critiqued,
recorded positive results for a wide variety of patients
when TT was used.
• The use of touch therapy as a nonpharmacological method
to reduce pain and anxiety is starting to receive its
deserved notice in the medical community.
• Research continues to verify the findings that touch
therapy is effective in reducing pain, anxiety, and fatigue.
• Touch therapy is a low cost option that should be
considered for pain control.
• Research needs to continue to collect additional support
for the use of touch therapy as a nonpharmacological
method for reducing pain, anxiety, and fatigue.
Conclusion
• As nurses, we are often frustrated by the failure of traditional
medicine to help patients with their pain, stress, and fatigue.
• Each of the articles reviewed presented clinical support of touch
therapy as an effective alternative treatment for pain, anxiety, and
fatigue.
• Alternative medicine is open to a lot of skepticism in our modern
medical world. Within our group this bias was evident.
• Our findings were inconclusive to recommend touch therapies as an
EBNP, but there is sufficient evidence to suggest touch therapies be
considered in holistic nursing practice.
References
Aghabati, N., Mohammadi, E., & Esmaiel, Z. P. (2010). The Effect of Therapeutic Touch on Pain and Fatigue of Cancer Patients
Undergoing Chemotherapy. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 7(3), 375-381.
doi:10.1093/ecam/nen006
Coakley, A., & Duffy, M. (2010). The effect of Therapeutic Touch on Post Operative Patient [Electronic version]. Journal of Holistic
Nursing, x(xx), 1-8. doi:10.1177/0898010110368861
Coppa, D. (2008). Internal Process of Therapeutic Touch. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 26(17). doi:10.1177/0898010107306691
Fazzino, D., Griffin, M., Mc Nulty, R., & Fitzpatrick, J. (2010). Energy Healing and Pain. Holistic Nursing Practice, 24(2), 79-88. Retrieved
June 20, 2010, from CINAHL.
Maville, J. , Bowen, J., & Benham, G. (2008). Effects of Healing Touch on Stress Perception and Biological Correlates. Holistic Nursing
Practice, 22(2), 103-110. Retrieved June 20, 2010, from CINAHL.
Monroe, C. (2009). Effects of Therapeutic Touch on Pain. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 27(2). doi:10.1177/08980101083227213
Peck, S. (2007). Aftermath of the Unexpected Unexplained and Abrupt Termination of Healing Touch and Extrapolation of Related Cost.
Complementary Health Practice Review, 12(2), 144-160. doi:10.1177/1533210107302934
Pierce, B. (2009). A Nonpharmalogical Adjunct for Pain Management. The Nurse Practitioner, 34(2), 10-13.
doi:10.1097/01.NPR.0000345262.116335e
So, P., Jiang, Y., & Quon, Y. (2008). Thereaputic Touch for Pain Relief in Adults (Review). The Cochrane Library, 4, 1-10. Retrieved June
20, 2010, from CINAHL.
Tan, G., Craine, M., Bair, M., Garcia, M., Gordiano, J., Jensen, M., ... Tsao, J. (2007). Efficacy of Selected Complementary and Alternative
Medicine Interventions for Chronic Pain. Journal of Rehabilitation Research Development, 44(2), 195-222. Retrieved June 20,
2010, from CINHAL