Integrative medicine is a unique approach to health care that is growing within public health care settings. This study examined the effects of an integrative care surgical program, which uses non-pharmacological tools and techniques (e.g., guided imagery, cognitive strategies), on patients' self-reported physical pain and anxiety. A six-item State Anxiety Scale (Marteau & Bekker, 1992; Tluczek, Henriques, & Brown, 2009), adapted from the longer State Anxiety Scale (SAI; Spielberger, 1983) was used to determine patients' anxiety and a standard 10-point Likert scale was used to determine patients' pain levels before and after the 1-hr session. As predicted, paired samples t-tests revealed that patients reported statistically significant reductions in state anxiety and pain (Anxiety pre M =3.09, SD = 0.86; post M= 2.06 SD = 0.61; t(107) = 13.08, p = .001; Pain pre M =3.82, SD = 2.52; post M= 2.64 SD = 2.25; t(94) = 7.15, p = .001). These findings support integrative care programs as a promising component of medical care. Future studies should examine the effective components and underlying mechanisms (e.g., cortisol changes) for this program.
