Graduate Certificates in Integrative Medicine and Integrative Nutrition & Lifestyle Medicine

Curriculum Details   

15 TOTAL CREDITS REQUIRED

GW’s Graduate Certificates in Integrative Medicine and Integrative Nutrition & Lifestyle Medicine program (100% online) feature coursework built on the same key INTM concepts and approaches defined in the MSHS in Integrative Medicine. Through 15 credit hours of foundational courses, students are equipped to embrace the changing demands and innovations of the health care landscape.

The Graduate Certificate in Integrative Medicine curriculum focuses on incorporating intersectional methods into health care practice, while courses in the Graduate Certificate in Integrative Nutrition & Lifestyle Medicine explore the essential role of nutrition care in overall patient well-being.

Three Credit Courses
Over the 8-week course, you should expect to spend an average of 6 hours per week of direct or guided instruction (e.g., peer-reviewing classmates writing assignments, engaging in team-based assignments, discussion boards) and 12 hours per week in independent learning (e.g., independent research, reading), for a total average of 18 hours per week of direct and independent learning. The time may vary for each student based on professional background, academic experience, and learning style.

Core

INTM 6200 Foundations of Integrative Medicine Research (2)

The application of the concepts of model-valid and paradigm-specific research designs and methodologies, and how and why these strategies could be groundbreaking for the holistic medical sciences.

INTM 6201 Foundations in Integrative Medicine (3)

INTM 6201 provides a framework for developing a patient-centric approach to evidence-based care. The course provides an overview of the historical, sociocultural, and professional evolution of INTM in the United States Competing models of therapeutic approaches, the ascendancy of biomedical reductionism, and a re-envisioned medical system based upon a personalized, therapeutic paradigm are explored. The role and identity of the INTM provider and review of basic professional competencies, including fundamental attitudes, knowledge, and skills, are analyzed. The course will focus on four domains in detail with a focus on evidence-based, patient-centered practice: communication skills and behavior change, lifestyle medicine, personalized medicine, and traditional medical systems. The structure of the INTM Programs allows students to master didactic coursework, while simultaneously applying that content in the practical application of concepts and clinical reasoning to address health care needs. The INTM Programs are designed for students to complete all coursework and work with faculty in an online environment. Many faculty members are clinicians and professionals who practice in the INTM field and thus are available for direct telephone consultation by appointment only.

Integrative Medicine Graduate Certificate

INTM 6202 Self Care Methods for Health Care Professionals (2)

Burnout is more prevalent among health care professionals than among their education-matched peers in the general US population. They are more susceptible to depression and anxiety and are at increased risk of job dissatisfaction leading to potential adverse patient outcomes (Koinis et al. 2015). Evidence has shown that discussing and reflecting on wellness topics in small groups has positive effects, including increased engagement and empowerment in the workplace, as well as decreased emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and burnout (Arnold et al. 2018). Evidence-based themes for wellness such as sleep, nutrition, financial health, support networks, and mindfulness have the potential to make a profound impact on health care provider wellness (ibid). In this Self-care Methods course, you will gain a better understanding of health care provider wellness and develop strategies to address the biological and psychological domains of personal and clinical care. You will engage in online discussions surrounding health care provider wellness and burnout and have the opportunity to further develop an awareness of their own wellness and identify areas for improvement. Topics for wellness strategies will focus on sleep hygiene, nutrition, physical fitness, financial health, mindfulness, support networks, workplace wellness, and medical error coping.

INTM 6203 Nutritional Metabolism & Environmental Exposure (3)

We will evaluate diseases of the gastrointestinal, immune and nervous systems and analyze the interconnectedness of these body systems in the context of chronic disease states Assessment of symptomatic, functional and disease markers and the development of integrative treatment plans will be emphasized. You will synthesize summary cases and submit to faculty and students for review.

INTM 6204 Metabolic Networks in Integrative Medicine (3)

You have completed the first course in this set of courses (INTM 6203) and will now extend and practice that knowledge. You will continue to evaluate diseases of the gastrointestinal, immune and nervous systems and analyze the interconnectedness of these body systems in the context of chronic disease states with an emphasis on assessment of symptomatic, functional and disease markers and the development of integrative treatment plans.

INTM 6206 Legal & Medical Ethics in Integrative Medicine (1)

Students will evaluate the legal and ethical considerations in decision making related to patient care ● Review the legal environment in which the Integrative Medicine physicians operate, how to assess risk and mitigate malpractice events ● Understand common ethical issues that arise in medical practice today ● Understand what is PHI, HIPAA Privacy Rule, HIPAA Security Rule, and the Patient Safety Rule ● Understand what is able to be disclosed, to whom, for what reason and what is needed for disclosure ● Review physician risk for referral to non-traditional providers ● Discuss agency relationships and duty to supervise ● Discuss ‘health freedom laws’ and state medical board regulatory powers ● Review the Federation of State Medical Boards model guidelines governing CAM therapies ● Review consumer rights to access versus states rights for regulation and licensure of medical practices ● Discuss the caveat of DSHEA as consumer right for dietary supplements ● Define non-FDA approved drug category ● Review access to CAM therapies in hospital setting ● Discuss special populations: children and infants ● Review third party reimbursement issues and mandated covered therapies ● Discuss financial risk with regard to departure from insurance guidelines ● Define advanced beneficiary notice and opting out for Medicare and Medicaid

Integrative Nutrition & Lifestyle Medicine Graduate Certificate

INTM 6101 Nutrition I: Assessment, Diagnosis, Intervention (3)

Would you like to diminish the burden of non-communicable, chronic diseases such as type II diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and their related comorbidities? Could yoU.S.ee nutrition as the foundation of your integrative approach to health? In Nutrition I, you will learn the risk factors for malnutrition in macronutrients (protein, fat, carbohydrates), micronutrients (fat versus water-soluble vitamins), as well as those due to environmental exposures including medications. Together we will think critically about nutrition, nutrition research, and their application to health care. Through this, we hope you will develop a passion for nutrition and keeping up with emerging research We will work to prepare you to be able to motivate others to care about nutrition (academically and as part of their lifestyle) and to spread the practice of preventative care with an emphasis on nutrition and lifestyle.

INTM 6102 Nutrition II: Life Cycle (3)

Now that you have developed a foundation in the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) from Nutrition I, we will delve deeper into nutrition requirements by examining how they change across the lifespan. You will hone your critical thinking in nutrition, nutrition research, and application to health care at each unique stage in the lifecycle. Along the way, we will expand upon the Nutrient Summary Table you created with your Nutrition I class to aid you in counseling patients of all ages in your integrative nutrition practice.

INTM 6105 Advanced Nutrition: Biochemistry (3)

Required for Nutrition Specialization In Advanced Nutrition, we will explore intermediary metabolism with a special emphasis on the interrelationship of nutrients, metabolic pathways, health, and disease. This builds on the foundation of Nutrition I and II, exploring more advanced and complex issues surrounding normal and abnormal metabolism of nutrients. Students will review dietary inputs from molecular, biochemical, and integrative perspectives.

INTM 6111 Current Topics in Nutrition (1)

Nutrition is an ever-evolving discipline with important considerations for health promotion. Research efforts regularly supplant existing recommendations and shed light on new aspects of human nutrition and metabolism with clear implications for dietary policy, nutrition education, and individualized patient care. In this survey course, we will investigate current topics in nutrition, based on the latest findings in the scientific literature, interest from the health care community, and public inquiry. Developing an appreciation of topics in the forefront among the minds of consumers, patients, media outlets, and fellow clinicians will help students ensure they stay abreast of the most recent topics relevant to their work with patient education and their own acumen with the nutrition care process.