Reiki In Health Care
According to the American Hospital Association, in 2007 Reiki was offered as a
standard part of patient care in 15% (over 800) hospitals in the U.S. Doctors, surgeons,
hospitals and medical facilities now offer Reiki to their patients for various health related
conditions. Dr. Mehmet Oz, one of the most respected cardiovascular surgeons in the
U.S., uses Reiki during open-heart surgeries and heart transplants. According to Dr. Oz,
“Reiki has become a sought-after healing art among patients and mainstream medical
professionals.”
Many on-going scientific studies are being conducted including here at the Cleveland
Clinic. You can find more information about them at the National Center for
Complimentary and Alternative Medicine’s website, (see the link below) or by using one
of the professional medical databases such as PubMed or Cochrane Collection.
One well-designed study is “Autonomic Nervous-System-Changes During Reiki
Treatment: A Preliminary Study.”(1) Forty-five subjects were assigned randomly to
three groups. One group received no treatment, another received Reiki treatment by
experienced Reiki practitioners and the third group received sham treatment by a person
with no Reiki training who used the same hand positions as those receiving real Reiki.
Measurements were made of heart rate, cardiac vagal tone, blood pressure, cardiac
sensitivity to baroreflex, and breathing. Heart rate and diastolic blood pressure decreased
significantly for those receiving Reiki, but not for those receiving sham Reiki, or no
treatment. This study indicates that the body does respond to Reiki energy and that this
response isn’t purely psychological. It also indicates a potential therapeutic effect for
Reiki.
“Reiki Improves Heart Rate Homeostasis in Laboratory Rats” (2) is another valuable
study. The value of using animals in this type of study is that they are not affected by
belief or skepticism regarding Reiki. In addition, highly accurate telemetric implants were
used to transmit the biometric data. White noise was used to increase the heart rate of
three implanted laboratory rats. The rats were treated by a Reiki practitioner and by a
sham Reiki practitioner prior to being exposed to white noise and after exposure. The
procedure involved the practitioner directing their hands toward the caged rat at a
distance of four feet. The rats that received Reiki experienced a significant reduction in
heart rate, both before having their heart rates elevated by white noise and after,
whereas those treated with sham Reiki did not. This is one of the most rigorous Reiki
studies to date and demonstrates that Reiki reduces the heart rate in both stressed and
unstressed animals and promotes homeostasis, both of which promote healthy heart
function.
Reiki is a complimentary reinforcement for all medical treatments, procedures and
therapies, psychological counseling and massage therapy. Reiki can be used for patients
of any age and in any state of health including those in hospice care and it is easily
practiced in all hospital environments from outpatient clinics to intensive care, during
surgeries and procedures, in nursing homes, etc. Reiki is especially appreciated in
hospice care due to its ability to alleviate pain, stress and anxiety for both patients and
family members. Reiki is also gentle enough to reduce the discomforts of pregnancy and
can help ease the pain of childbirth.
Hospitals such as Metro Health Medical Center and the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland,
OH, Tucson Medical Center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and
Pennsylvania’s St. Mary Medical Center have Reiki practitioners available to a range of
patients including those with cancer or recovering from surgery. Research studies of
Reiki show a significant reduction of stress and pain. Patients also report increased
feelings of relaxation and sense of well-being. One study cited improvement in immune
and nervous system function and increased mobility in patients with conditions such as
multiple sclerosis, lupus and fibromyalgia. At Portsmouth Regional Hospital in New
Hampshire, surgical patients experienced less bleeding, decreased their use of pain
medications, stayed for shorter periods of time and reported increased satisfaction with
both pre and post surgical Reiki sessions.
For more medical information including clinical trials and references, please click here
for the website of the National Institute of Health, National Center for
Complimentary and Alternative Medicine.
(1) Nicole Makay, M.Sc., Stig Hansen, Ph.D., and Oona McFarlane, M.A., The Journal
of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Volume 10, Number 6, 2004, pp. 1077–
1081. This study is also discussed in “The Science of Reiki” by Nicole Mackay, Reiki
News Magazine (Summer 2005).
(2) Ann Linda Baldwin, Ph.D, Christina Wagers, and Gary E. Schwartz, Ph.D., The
Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Volume 14, Number 4, 2008, pp.
417–422.
standard part of patient care in 15% (over 800) hospitals in the U.S. Doctors, surgeons,
hospitals and medical facilities now offer Reiki to their patients for various health related
conditions. Dr. Mehmet Oz, one of the most respected cardiovascular surgeons in the
U.S., uses Reiki during open-heart surgeries and heart transplants. According to Dr. Oz,
“Reiki has become a sought-after healing art among patients and mainstream medical
professionals.”
Many on-going scientific studies are being conducted including here at the Cleveland
Clinic. You can find more information about them at the National Center for
Complimentary and Alternative Medicine’s website, (see the link below) or by using one
of the professional medical databases such as PubMed or Cochrane Collection.
One well-designed study is “Autonomic Nervous-System-Changes During Reiki
Treatment: A Preliminary Study.”(1) Forty-five subjects were assigned randomly to
three groups. One group received no treatment, another received Reiki treatment by
experienced Reiki practitioners and the third group received sham treatment by a person
with no Reiki training who used the same hand positions as those receiving real Reiki.
Measurements were made of heart rate, cardiac vagal tone, blood pressure, cardiac
sensitivity to baroreflex, and breathing. Heart rate and diastolic blood pressure decreased
significantly for those receiving Reiki, but not for those receiving sham Reiki, or no
treatment. This study indicates that the body does respond to Reiki energy and that this
response isn’t purely psychological. It also indicates a potential therapeutic effect for
Reiki.
“Reiki Improves Heart Rate Homeostasis in Laboratory Rats” (2) is another valuable
study. The value of using animals in this type of study is that they are not affected by
belief or skepticism regarding Reiki. In addition, highly accurate telemetric implants were
used to transmit the biometric data. White noise was used to increase the heart rate of
three implanted laboratory rats. The rats were treated by a Reiki practitioner and by a
sham Reiki practitioner prior to being exposed to white noise and after exposure. The
procedure involved the practitioner directing their hands toward the caged rat at a
distance of four feet. The rats that received Reiki experienced a significant reduction in
heart rate, both before having their heart rates elevated by white noise and after,
whereas those treated with sham Reiki did not. This is one of the most rigorous Reiki
studies to date and demonstrates that Reiki reduces the heart rate in both stressed and
unstressed animals and promotes homeostasis, both of which promote healthy heart
function.
Reiki is a complimentary reinforcement for all medical treatments, procedures and
therapies, psychological counseling and massage therapy. Reiki can be used for patients
of any age and in any state of health including those in hospice care and it is easily
practiced in all hospital environments from outpatient clinics to intensive care, during
surgeries and procedures, in nursing homes, etc. Reiki is especially appreciated in
hospice care due to its ability to alleviate pain, stress and anxiety for both patients and
family members. Reiki is also gentle enough to reduce the discomforts of pregnancy and
can help ease the pain of childbirth.
Hospitals such as Metro Health Medical Center and the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland,
OH, Tucson Medical Center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and
Pennsylvania’s St. Mary Medical Center have Reiki practitioners available to a range of
patients including those with cancer or recovering from surgery. Research studies of
Reiki show a significant reduction of stress and pain. Patients also report increased
feelings of relaxation and sense of well-being. One study cited improvement in immune
and nervous system function and increased mobility in patients with conditions such as
multiple sclerosis, lupus and fibromyalgia. At Portsmouth Regional Hospital in New
Hampshire, surgical patients experienced less bleeding, decreased their use of pain
medications, stayed for shorter periods of time and reported increased satisfaction with
both pre and post surgical Reiki sessions.
For more medical information including clinical trials and references, please click here
for the website of the National Institute of Health, National Center for
Complimentary and Alternative Medicine.
(1) Nicole Makay, M.Sc., Stig Hansen, Ph.D., and Oona McFarlane, M.A., The Journal
of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Volume 10, Number 6, 2004, pp. 1077–
1081. This study is also discussed in “The Science of Reiki” by Nicole Mackay, Reiki
News Magazine (Summer 2005).
(2) Ann Linda Baldwin, Ph.D, Christina Wagers, and Gary E. Schwartz, Ph.D., The
Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Volume 14, Number 4, 2008, pp.
417–422.