How do we decide on the most effective way to heal ourselves or our patients? Complementary therapies are a vital part of any integrated approach to health which incorporates specialist and layperson knowledge. In this book, David Aldridge examines cultural understandings of illness and medicines. He provides a critique of orthodox methods used to assess treatment, and advocates a more pluralistic approach to medical research and practice, encompassing the physical, psychological, spiritual and social dimensions of a person's life. To assess medical research in a range of situations, Aldridge.