As Maryland University of Integrative Health (MUIH) grows, it continues to look for ways to offer a variety of educational and clinical experience to its students while promoting integrative medicine in the greater community. In collaboration with Howard County General Hospital, a member of Johns Hopkins Medicine, MUIH students will now be able to offer integrative clinical services to patients in the hospital seeking treatment. The first of these experiences for MUIH clinical interns will be available at Howard County General Hospital (HCGH), located near the MUIH campus.
“Partnering with our community hospital as we begin this exciting relationship with Johns Hopkins Medicine will be the perfect way for us to meaningfully touch the lives of our county’s citizens,” said Frank Vitale, CEO and President. “It also allows MUIH clinical interns and faculty to be contributing members of an interprofessional healthcare team.”
This new agreement offers MUIH graduate clinical interns the opportunity to learn from and work beside health providers at HCGH. The clinical interns will be able to offer invaluable non-pharmaceutical alternatives to patients who may otherwise not have the resources or opportunity to utilize them, enabling HCGH to develop and offer a progressive, integrative medical model. By providing individuals more choices for their preferred type of care, this integrative model allows patients to have greater control over their healing experience and results in a higher level of overall satisfaction with their care.
To begin, clinical interns from the MUIH’s Master of Science in Yoga Therapy will practice at the bedside of patients who are recovering from surgery. These clinical interns will provide breathing and mindfulness techniques to specifically help patients deal with pain.
This five-year agreement begins February 1, 2016. MUIH looks forward to working closely with HCGH to create a successful and rewarding clinical, educational, and collaborative experiences for students, faculty, health providers, and individuals seeking treatment at the hospital.