What constitutes a demonstration of effectiveness in the use of hands-on healing from the healers’ perspective?

As the awareness and use of hands-on healing modalities achieve greater popularity they have slowly edged their way into the sphere of biomedical practices. Proponents of biomedicine, as the gatekeeper of medical interventions in Western societies, have argued that hands-on healing modalities show accountability for effective and safe practice. There is at present no accepted measure that demonstrates effective-based practice for these healing modalities. If hands-on healing is to receive greater acceptance, and possibly integration within biomedical practices, these issues need to be addressed. Research of this nature is blighted by there being no dedicated science, so although there is an abundance of published research it is dispersed or difficult to access, leading it to be unsuccessful in generating awareness. Historically, research evaluating effectiveness of hands-on healing has focused on predetermined outcomes from biomedical diagnosis. This has placed the focus of hands-on healing on the healee, and neglected aspects of the healer, leading to limited available research detailing the perceptions of healers. The research enquiry was performed around the charity, the Healing Trust. The Healing Trust training program was completed to acquaint the author in how hands-on healing is performed within the charity. Ten experienced healers, who are members of the Healing Trust, were interviewed regarding their practices of hands-on healing. Discussion was focused on how healers perceived what constituted an effective intervention from performing hands-on healing on a healee. Respondents answered a set of open-ended questions from which they were encouraged to expand on their experience of practicing hands-on healing. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using Grounded Theory to create a generalised theory of perceptions of effectiveness. Within the thesis a discussion is presented that theorises that effectiveness is perceived as enacting a ‘change’ within the healee that is acknowledged by both the healer and healee as a therapeutic outcome. Therapeutic outcomes of this calibre are not accepted by biomedicine as genuine markers of success, due to their lack of objective measurement. If hands-on healing is to acquire better recognition there needs to be a consensus as to what effectiveness means, and how to measure it.

As the awareness and use of hands-on healing modalities achieve greater popularity they have slowly edged their way into the sphere of biomedical practices. Proponents of biomedicine, as the gatekeeper of medical interventions in Western societies, have argued that hands-on healing modalities show accountability for effective and safe practice. There is at present no accepted measure that demonstrates effective-based practice for these healing modalities. If hands-on healing is to receive greater acceptance, and possibly integration within biomedical practices, these issues need to be addressed.

Research of this nature is blighted by there being no dedicated science, so although there is an abundance of published research it is dispersed or difficult to access, leading it to be unsuccessful in generating awareness. Historically, research evaluating effectiveness of hands-on healing has focused on predetermined outcomes from biomedical diagnosis. This has placed the focus of hands-on healing on the healee, and neglected aspects of the healer, leading to limited available research detailing the perceptions of healers.

The research enquiry was performed around the charity, the Healing Trust. The Healing Trust training program was completed to acquaint the author in how hands-on healing is performed within the charity. Ten experienced healers, who are members of the Healing Trust, were interviewed regarding their practices of hands-on healing. Discussion was focused on how healers perceived what constituted an effective intervention from performing hands-on healing on a healee. Respondents answered a set of open-ended questions from which they were encouraged to expand on their experience of practicing hands-on healing. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using Grounded Theory to create a generalised theory of perceptions of effectiveness.

Within the thesis a discussion is presented that theorises that effectiveness is perceived as enacting a ‘change’ within the healee that is acknowledged by both the healer and healee as a therapeutic outcome. Therapeutic outcomes of this calibre are not accepted by biomedicine as genuine markers of success, due to their lack of objective measurement. If hands-on healing is to acquire better recognition there needs to be a consensus as to what effectiveness means, and how to measure it.