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Healthcare
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Public Health Prevention Through Integrative Medicine: Community-Based and Society-Level Interventions
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Public Health Prevention Through Integrative Medicine: Community-Based and Society-Level Interventions

A special issue of Healthcare (ISSN 2227-9032). This special issue belongs to the section "Public Health and Preventive Medicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 2932

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Aleksandar Racz

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Medicine, University of Rijeka, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia
Interests: environmental health; public health; food safety; sustainable development; environmental ethics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Ljerka Armano

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Hospital Infection Prevention and Control Department, Sestre Milosrdnice University Hospital Center, HR-10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Interests: public health, preventive medicine, integrative and complementary medicine; oncology; nursing; natural therapies; medical education, preventive medicine; forest medicine
Prof. Dr. Tomislav Rukavina

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Social Medicine and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Rijeka, HR -51000 Rijeka, Croatia
Interests: epidemiology; public health; microbiology and bacteriology; preventive medicine; evidence based medicine

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, the global healthcare community has increasingly recognized the potential of evidence-based complementary and integrative medicine (CIM) to address some of the most pressing public health challenges of our time. As non-communicable diseases (NCDs), chronic stress, and mental health disorders place an increasing burden on healthcare systems, innovative approaches grounded in lifestyle and integrative medicine are gaining traction in preventive strategies at both the community and societal levels.

This Special Issue aims to consolidate interdisciplinary evidence on the role of CIM in public health prevention, with a particular focus on its implementation, accessibility, and outcomes across diverse populations. Interventions such as mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), forest therapy, acupuncture, yoga, and phytotherapy have demonstrated potential to enhance health-related quality of life, reduce the risk of chronic diseases, and support mental resilience.

We particularly encourage submissions that investigate how integrative practices can be scaled within public health systems, integrated into policy frameworks, and tailored to address health inequalities. Contributions highlighting interdisciplinary collaboration, participatory research, and health system strengthening are also welcome.

In this Special Issue, original research articles, systematic reviews, policy papers, and implementation studies are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

  • Systematic reviews and meta-analyses on the role of CIM in preventive public health;
  • Implementation science studies on CIM programs in schools, workplaces, and communities;
  • Clinical and population-level research on MBSR, yoga, acupuncture, phytotherapy, and forest therapy;
  • Longitudinal studies evaluating health-related quality of life and resilience outcomes;
  • Policy analyses on integrating CIM into national and regional prevention strategies;
  • Health economic evaluations of CIM programs and their cost-effectiveness in disease prevention;
  • Comparative effectiveness research between biomedical and CIM-based preventive approaches;
  • Social prescribing models and their impact on community health and social cohesion;
  • Intersectoral collaboration between public health, environmental, and social care systems;
  • Sustainability-oriented preventive health models that integrate nature-based and traditional therapies.

We are excited to receive your contributions.

Dr. Aleksandar Racz
Dr. Ljerka Armano
Prof. Dr. Tomislav Rukavina
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Healthcare is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • integrative medicine 
  • health promotion 
  • community-based interventions 
  • health equity 
  • health-related quality of life 
  • forest therapy 
  • acupuncture 
  • lifestyle medicine 
  • healthcare system integration 
  • sustainable health interventions

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 2202 KB  
Article
Efficacy of Multimodal Rehabilitation Protocol with High-Force Machine Spinal Decompression Therapy in Chronic Low Back Pain with Sciatica Due to Lumbar Disc Herniation: A Pre–Post Observational Study
by Bernard B. N. Nado and Snježana Schuster
Healthcare 2026, 14(10), 1294; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14101294 - 10 May 2026
Viewed by 282
Abstract
Background: Chronic low back pain (CLBP) with sciatica caused by lumbar disc herniation is a common and disabling condition. Combined therapeutic protocols that include high force machine spinal decompression therapy (SDT), infrared therapy, and interferential therapy are increasingly used in clinical practice, although [...] Read more.
Background: Chronic low back pain (CLBP) with sciatica caused by lumbar disc herniation is a common and disabling condition. Combined therapeutic protocols that include high force machine spinal decompression therapy (SDT), infrared therapy, and interferential therapy are increasingly used in clinical practice, although evidence in chronic populations remains limited. Because this study did not include a control group, only observed pre–post changes can be reported. This study primarily aimed to assess observed changes in pain intensity following a multimodal therapy protocol in adults with chronic lumbar radiculopathy. Methods: A pre–post observational study was conducted in 234 adults with chronic lumbar radiculopathy lasting ≥12 weeks and MRI confirmed disc herniation at L4–L5 and/or L5–S1. Participants completed ten treatment sessions delivered twice weekly over five weeks. Each session included infrared therapy, high force SDT, and interferential therapy. Pain intensity (VAS 0–10) was measured before the first and before the tenth session. Results: Pain intensity decreased significantly after treatment (Wilcoxon W = 18,830, p < 0.001), with a mean reduction of 2.5 points, exceeding the minimal clinically important change threshold, and with a very large effect size (rank biserial correlation = 0.991). No significant gender differences were observed. Baseline pain (β = 0.312, p < 0.001) and age (β = 0.145, p = 0.020) independently predicted post-treatment pain (R2 = 0.129). Conclusion: A reduction in pain intensity was observed after five-week combined therapy protocol. Due to the absence of a control group and the simultaneous use of multiple modalities, no causal conclusions can be drawn, nor can improvements be attributed to SDT alone. Randomized controlled trials with functional outcomes and long-term follow-up are warranted. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Health Prevention Through Integrative Medicine: Community-Based and Society-Level Interventions)
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31 pages, 738 KB  
Article
Improving Mental Health, Self-Efficacy and Social Support in Older People Through Community Intervention Based on Mindfulness: A Quasi-Experimental Study
by Denis Juraga, Darko Roviš, Mihaela Marinović Glavić, Lovorka Bilajac, Maša Antonić, Hein Raat and Vanja Vasiljev
Healthcare 2026, 14(2), 229; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14020229 - 16 Jan 2026
Viewed by 879
Abstract
Background: Aging is a complex process that involves various biological, psychological and social changes. Moreover, older people (≥65 years) are more susceptible to lower self-efficacy and social support, as well as deteriorating mental health. As the global population ages, there is a growing [...] Read more.
Background: Aging is a complex process that involves various biological, psychological and social changes. Moreover, older people (≥65 years) are more susceptible to lower self-efficacy and social support, as well as deteriorating mental health. As the global population ages, there is a growing demand for evidence-based interventions tailored to address specific mental health problems, enhance social support and improve overall well-being. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a seven-week mindfulness-based community intervention on mental health, self-efficacy and social support in older people. Methods: This quasi-experimental nonrandomized study included 257 participants who were divided into an intervention group and a comparison group that did not participate in the seven-week mindfulness-based community intervention and was not part of a waiting list. Assessments were conducted before the intervention began and 6 months after its completion. Results: The results revealed a significant reduction in depression in the intervention group (p < 0.001). Furthermore, the intervention led to a significant improvement in general self-efficacy, chronic disease self-management self-efficacy, physical activity and nutritional self-efficacy compared with the comparison group. Perceived social support increased within the intervention group; however, covariate adjusted between-group effects for social support were not statistically significant. Conclusions: Overall, the mindfulness-based community intervention was associated with improvements in current depressive symptoms and multiple self-efficacy domains at 6-month follow-up in older people in a community setting. Effects on perceived social support were less robust, and no statistically significant between-group differences were observed after adjustment for baseline covariates. The results of the present study show that this program leads to immediate health benefits in terms of mental health and self-efficacy in older people while contributing to the development of effective strategies for chronic disease self-management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Health Prevention Through Integrative Medicine: Community-Based and Society-Level Interventions)
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19 pages, 265 KB  
Article
Comparing the Attitudes of Healthcare Professionals and Cancer Patients Toward the Integration and Perceived Effectiveness of Complementary and Alternative Medicine
by Ljerka Armano, Martina Trnčević, Andrea Armano, Aneta Perak and Aleksandar Racz
Healthcare 2025, 13(21), 2818; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13212818 - 6 Nov 2025
Viewed by 1163
Abstract
Background: Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is increasingly used to supplement evidence-based medicine (EBM), especially in the treatment of cancer patients. Objective: The study aimed to analyze the beliefs, attitudes, and expectations of healthcare professionals and cancer patients regarding the integration of CAM [...] Read more.
Background: Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is increasingly used to supplement evidence-based medicine (EBM), especially in the treatment of cancer patients. Objective: The study aimed to analyze the beliefs, attitudes, and expectations of healthcare professionals and cancer patients regarding the integration of CAM into the Western medical system, and to examine differences between these groups in their expectations for CAM effectiveness. The hypotheses were that there are no statistically significant differences in attitudes between healthcare professionals (nurses and physicians) and cancer patients regarding CAM integration into EBM and the effectiveness of CAM. Methods: The study was conducted on a stratified sample of 832 respondents: 411 cancer patients and 421 health professionals (100 physicians and 321 nurses). Validated questionnaires based on CHBQ and IMAQ instruments were used. Descriptive and inferential statistics were applied in the analysis. Results: Patients showed a significantly more positive attitude toward CAM methods than healthcare professionals. A total of 70% of respondents believed that CAM should be integrated into EBM. Most respondents supported formally noting CAM therapies in medical records and including them in medical history. Healthcare professionals, especially physicians, expressed greater concerns about the effectiveness of CAM, while patients had more positive expectations about its benefits. Conclusions: The findings suggest that healthcare professionals require better education on CAM therapies and that greater openness is necessary to integrate these methods into medical practice. Although patients have high expectations for CAM, its inclusion in the formal medical system requires further research on safety and efficacy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Health Prevention Through Integrative Medicine: Community-Based and Society-Level Interventions)
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