ResearchC ornerWelcome to a new quarterly feature in E nergy Magazine. In these pages we hope to educate you on the research and researchissues associated with Healing Touch and other energy modalities .We envis ion an article that features easy to understand explanationsof completed research and discuss ions about issues in energyresearch. We will have guest contributors and welcome your ques-tions . Whether you are a lay person new to research terminology oran experienced researcher, I hope you will enjoy these contributions .

Our firs t article is the new section on research that will be included inthe upcoming revis ions of the Healing Touch P rogram Level 1Notebook. It is being published so that all those who take a HealingTouch P rogram Level 1 class can benefit from the information. E njoyand feel free to comment.

R E S E AR C H B AS IS FOR HE ALING TOUC HAs a level 1 s tudent, you may have a background in research review or you may

not. This section of the Notebook is intended to introduc e you to:

a. The purpose and types of research

b. The links between research and theory

c. The issues in research that will help you become a good consumer and

advocate of Healing Touch research

d. The types of that have been done,and

e. How to access research for your own use

P UR P OS E AND T Y P E S OF R E S E AR C H

Within any practice discipline, there is a need and des ire to demonstrate the effec-

tiveness and results of that practice in order to provide the most effective and effi-

cient treatment to those served by that practice. It is also des irable to determine

the experience of those giving and receiving the therapy in order to determine if

there are s imilarities amongst groups . R esearch is cons idered by many to be the

J une 2008 Energy MagazineTM

B y K athy Moreland Layte, R N, MS cN, C NS ,C HTP, Healing Toiuch P rogram Instructor

best way to open the minds of welcome

sceptics to the poss ibilities of healing

with the modalities of Healing Touch.

R esearch is valued by healthcare agen-

cies , profess ional healthcare schools

and by an increas ingly wary public that

has believed in the past that comple-

mentary therapies are sham practices

that have no bas is in science and no

place in conventional healthcare and

healing practices . As a level 1 s tudent,

you may be asked questions such as :

a. How do you know this therapy

works?

b. What evidence is there to decide

which types of illnesses or health

issues this therapy works on?

c. Is there any research to support

this practice?

d. Are the effects of Healing Touch

therapy s imilar to other forms of

energy work?

e. What is the experience of people

who get this therapy?

f. What theories support research

into this work?

The conduct (and reading) of research studies, helps answer

these questions and more. The importance of recognizing

and supporting research was recognized by the Colorado

Center for Healing Touch (now Healing Touch Program) in

1997 when it established an office of research under the cur-

rent Director of Healing Touch Program, Cynthia Hutchison,

RN, DNSc, CHTP/I, HTCP/I, through its then, membership

organization with the support of the American Holistic Nurses

Association (AHNA). HTP continues to support research

through affiliations with a number of different institutions (e.g.

The Watson Caring Science Institute) and researchers.

Healing Touch Program continues to act as a consultant for

those wishing to conduct or participate in research through

these affiliations. The advancement of computerized journal

search engines to find research has made finding reputable

studies relatively simple.

LINKS BETWEEN RESEARCHAND THEORYTheory and research are foundational blocks for practice.

Theories drive research and research drives theory. A simple

way of explaining this is to say that theory and research are

interdependent—they rely on each other. Theories are

descriptions of interrelated concepts and are driven by belief

systems or philosophies. Theories can form the foundations

of practice and give a more solid foundation to the develop-

ment and testing of practices that are reflective of the theory

concepts. For example: The Theory of Human Caring

involves the concept of intentionality or heart centered prac-

tice. Research might look at a description of living a heart

centered practice OR might look at whether being heart cen-

tered (or intentional) really makes a difference in the outcome

of the therapy. Theory (or theories) are tested and supported

with both qualitative and quantitative research methods.

Healing Touch practices are congruent with theories based in

humanistic, heart centered philosophies such as those of

many nurse theorists (Watson, Newman, Rogers, Nightingale,

among others) and other religious and social science philoso-

phies. These theories support the openness of inquiry that

embraces many types of research.

BECOMING A GOOD CONSUMER OFHEALING TOUCH RESEARCHAs a level 1 student, you may or may not need to look to the

research to “do the work”. It is important however that you

have some grounding in knowing about research should the

opportunity or need present itself. This section will look at

some basic issues in research that will improve your research

knowledge.

There are two general kinds of research that are done—

quantitative and qualitative. Quantitative studies are the

types of studies that tend to look for statistical evidence that

a treatment impacts on a specific condition. In the scientific

community, the randomized clinical trials, meta-analyses and

systematic reviews are considered to be the best forms of

research. These types of studies require control of variables,

large numbers of participants or exposures to the treatment

and complex statistical methods to be worthy of review.

These types of studies are open to a great deal of scrutiny to

determine if controls and/or conditions are met. Numerous

authors have outlined the difficulties of enacting these con-

trols given the variable nature of giving and receiving energy

based therapies (see references).

Qualitative studies, on the other hand generally strive to

elicit descriptions of experience or meanings of experience.

They are not used to determine effectiveness of interventions

but rather look for themes of experience or meaning or rela-

tionships that add to the richness or interrelatedness of con-

cepts in the experience. These types of studies do not

require large samples and don’t control for variables in the

same way as quantitative studies. They do follow clearly out-

lined processes however, so that they may be repeated by

someone else (auditability). Qualitative studies help elicit

themes that cannot be measured such as spirituality, caring,

hope, loss of time etc.

Mixed methods studies are becoming increasingly popular in

current literature. They tend to look at the combination of

experience and controlled variables to find more comprehen-

sive conclusions and to look for inconsistencies between

measured outcomes and participants’ descriptions of their

experience.

Given this information, how can you, as a level 1 student,

decide which studies best support “the work”? Asking the

following questions helps:

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1. Is the study published in a reputable, peer reviewed jour-

nal? Many reputable studies have been done as part of grad-

uate studies but have not been published. Peer reviewed,

published studies generally carry more weight in the science

community.

2. If the study is quantitative, are the authors making claims

that they have proven the effectiveness of the therapy? This

would not be desired. Few reputable researchers would ever

say that their research “proves” anything. At best they are

hoping to find results that suggest that the effect was not

due to chance alone (statistical significance).

3. Does the discussion section of the paper explain why sta-

tistical significance was not achieved (if it wasn’t)? A good

research paper does not always have to find statistical signif-

icance. The desired results may not have occurred because

of the aforementioned method and/or sample issues e.g. not

enough participants (small sample size), poor control of vari-

ables, treatment not given appropriately etc.

4. If the study is qualitative, have the authors been true to

their method of research? Would you be able to understand

exactly how they conducted the study?

5. If you are still stuck, do you know who to contact?

What Types of Studies Have Been Done to DateIt is important to know that a great deal of research is being

done involving Healing Touch therapies and other healing

modalities. Whole journals are devoted to reporting of

research so the body of knowledge is continually growing.

Published and unpublished studies and pilot studies have

been conducted looking at the impact of HT therapies on

many disease conditions and symptoms such as cancer,

heart disease, palliative (Hospice) care, elder care, immuno-

logical and endocrine conditions (HIV and diabetes),

headaches, postoperative wounds, pediatric conditions, alco-

holism, premenopausal syndrome and dementia. Symptoms

explored have included but are not limited to pain, fatigue,

depression, anxiety, agitation, stress and nausea. These

studies have explored the work across the life span and in

men and women. To list all the studies that have been con-

ducted in Healing Touch would take pages! A disciplined

consumer of research would view that list with a very dis-

cerning eye and ask many of the questions outlined above

looking for what is considered the best evidence to support

HT practice.

Following are three examples of Healing Touch research that

support the work and would meet most of the criteria noted

above. It must be emphasized that these are not the only

studies that meet these criteria and that there is an increas-

ing body of well conducted studies.

Quantitative StudyCook, C.A., Guerrerio, J.F., & Slater, V.E. (2004).

Healing Touch and quality of life in women receiving radi-

ation treatment for cancer: A randomized controlled trial.

Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, 10(3), 34-41.

The researchers in this study explored the impact of HT on

the reported health-related quality of life of women receiving

HT during radiation treatment for gynecological or breast

cancer. The sample consisted of 62 newly diagnosed women

who were randomly assigned to receive either HT or a mock

(fake) form of the therapy. The participants received either the

HT treatment or the mock therapy weekly for a total of six

weeks immediately after their radiation treatment. The partici-

pants were not aware of which treatment they were receiving

as it took place behind a screen (blinding). Those receiving

HT reported improvement in all 9 areas of quality of life

measured with statistical significance in the area of vitality,

pain and physical function (compared to those that received

mock therapy. This study addresses many of the method-

ological challenges that confront those that conduct energy

therapy research.

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Research Basis for Healing Touch

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Qualitative StudiesAlthough not published, three phenomenological studies

were conducted in the late 80’s exploring the lived experi-

ence of women receiving HT therapy during their breast can-

cer experience/treatment. Diane Kopecki, MS, RN, OCN,

HTP, Charlene Cristiano, ARNP-BC, MSN, CHTP and Kathy

Moreland Layte, MScN, CNS, HTCP/I conducted graduate

theses in nursing that brought out consistent themes of con-

nectedness and caring between the recipient and practition-

er, recognition of strength in self and self care needs and

altered perceptions of time, environment helping these

women get through the experience.

Mixed Method StudyWilkinson, D.S., Knox, P.L., Chatman, J.E., Johnson, T.L. et

al. (2002). The clinical effectiveness of Healing Touch. The

Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine.

8(1), 33-47.

The researchers in this mixed methods design wanted to

explore whether HT enhanced health. To determine enhanced

health, they recorded salivary secreted immunoglobulin A

(sIgA), a protein in the body thought to be related health

enhancement before and after treatment, self report levels of

stress, perceptions of health enhancement and administered

qualitative questionnaires. Their sample consisted of 22

clients who had never experienced HT. All of the participants

experienced 3 types of conditions: no treatment, HT alone,

and HT plus music and guided imagery over a period of two

weeks. Statistically significant results and the review of the

qualitative data support that HT enhances health through

raising sIgA concentrations, lowering perceptions of stress

and relieving pain. The researchers suggest that the result is

not the result of placebo alone.

HOW TO ACCESS RESEARCH FOR YOUR OWN USEWhether you are an experienced researcher or a novice in the

language of research, your best resource for finding rep-

utable research studies involving HT is to contact either your

local library, your local College/University library (if possible)

and/or the Health Science library of your local healthcare

facility for their help in finding and accessing published arti-

cles in your area of interest. Healing Touch Program’s online

magazine, Energy, routinely reports on research studies in a

user friendly way to keep practitioners and interested parties

up to date. Searching the web can also help you find

resources and titles of reputable articles. Sometimes a brief

description outlining the study design and findings can be

found and sometimes the full article can be found. Some

libraries charge a small fee for access to a full article. In the

event that you require assistance searching for reputable arti-

cles, you can contact HTP and you will be directed to the

appropriate resources.

SUMMARYHealing Touch is one of many energy based modalities that is

being increasingly studied. Many science disciplines are turn-

ing to the study of subtle energies in their quest to under-

stand the phenomena of energy based therapies. One can

look to new literature within almost every discipline to find

the shifting openness to the belief in subtle energies and its

impact on our lives. The science of physics and psychoneu-

roimmunology are publishing increasingly sophisticated theo-

ries and research about energy. Knowledge in these areas is

ever expanding and beyond the scope of explanation in this

level of the Program. (see the recommended book list for

other sources of support).

This section of the Notebook has introduced you to the pur-

pose and types of research, the links between theory and

research, considerations in being a good consumer of

Healing Touch research, topics in HT research and how to

access research for your own use. One need not become an

expert in research to be an effective practitioner of Healing

Touch modalities, but having knowledge of what to look for in

research and how to access and understand it can assist you

in your practice. This knowledge will help you explain “the

work” to others whether you are practicing with your family

or hoping to bring this work into a more conventional envi-

ronment such as a healthcare facility, academic institution or

business. Resources are available to you through Healing

Touch Program should you need more assistance in access-

ing or understanding the research that is available.

ReferencesAi, A.L., Peterson, C., Gillespie, B., Bolling, S.F., et al. (2001).Designing clinical trials on energy healing: Ancient art encountersmedical science. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, 7(4),83-90.

Engebretson, J. & Wardell, D. (2007). Energy-based modalities.

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Nursing Clinics of North America, 42, 243-259.

Hawk, C., Long, C.R., Reiter, R., Davis, C.S. et al. (2002). Issues inplanning a placebo-controlled trial of manual methods: Results of apilot study. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine,8(1), 21-32.

Hintz, K.J., Yount, G.L. Kadar, Schwartz, G. et al. Bioenergy defini-tions and research guidelines. Alternative Therapies in Health andMedicine, 9(1), 13-30.

Jonas, W.B., & Chez, R.A., (2003). The role and importance of defi-nitions and standards in healing research. Alternative Therapies inHealth and Medicine, 9(3), A5-A9.

Riley, D. & Berman, B., (2002). Complementary and alternative med-icine in outcomes research. Alternative Therapies in Health andMedicine, 8(2), 36-37.

Warber, S.L., Gordon, A., Gillespie, B.W., Olson, M., et al. (2003).Standards for conducting clinical biofield energy healing research.Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, 9(3), A54-A64.

About the author:

Kathy Moreland Layte RN, BScN, MScN, CS, HTCP, CHTP,

Instructor in Training has been involved in energy based heal-

ing since 1994 and has been a certified practitioner of HT

since 1998. She has been a Registered Nurse for twenty five

years in a variety of roles in Canada and the United States.

She was the first person in Canada to do research in HT as

part of her Master's thesis. Currently, she is a professor of

nursing in the McMaster/Mohawk/Conestoga Collaborative

BScN program and is pursuing her PhD in nursing. Her dis-

sertation will explore the effect of HT on pain in the elderly.

She loves teaching and bring the work to students and facul-

ty of the nursing program. Her real passions in life are her

husband Brian and their young children, Alexis and Austin. In

her precious spare time, Kathy loves to be outdoors, read

(something without references) and dance (to anything!).

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