Drithi Padukone
Research Mentor: Dr. Nikhil Parekh
Mentor Department: Wayne State University, NonUM
Author(s): Not Available
Session: Session 5 (2:00 PM – 2:50 PM)
Presentation Type: Poster 23
Abstract
Integrative medicine is a valuable part of healthcare that focuses on wellness through practices like yoga, tai chi, and herbal remedies. In our research, we used this as an umbrella term to explore how these methods play a role in the lives of students and community members. Our research group performed this study because we wanted to understand the connection between these daily habits and how they might influence a student’s or community member’s awareness of serious illnesses like lung cancer. Essentially we attempted to see through a survey how students and community members see the impact of Integrative Medicine on a day to day basis. We investigated this by designing a survey in Qualtrics that looked at both the numbers and the personal experiences of students and community members. Once the responses were available, we cleaned the data in Excel and conducted our statistical analysis in Excel and Posit Cloud. Descriptive statistics were used to explore relationships between beliefs about integrative medicine and reported behaviors. One statistically significant finding came from the analysis of Question 26 (related to music and mental health) and Question 29 (which related to music and well-being), with a p value of 0.04848. Students and community members who viewed music therapy as effective were more likely to intentionally use music to influence their well-being. While certain comparisons, such as belief in Ayurveda and cancer prevention, were not statistically significant, the data still showed noticeable trends. Overall, this project suggests that integrative medicine may influence how students and community members think about their health through small everyday habits, and familiarity may be important for first steps toward healthier choices. I am now creating a short video-based implementation project focusing on whole person wellness for students at the University of Michigan based on my work with this project and the data that we obtained.
