Current status of access to medical information for acupuncturists at the medical institutions -in the field of management of terminal cancer-

本研究的目的是评估针灸治疗的现状，以及针灸师和其他医疗保健专业人员在医疗机构为癌症患者提供姑息治疗之间的信息共享。通过问卷调查和访谈，我们发现针灸治疗在疼痛等症状的治疗中发挥了作用，并且是患者或其家属要求提供的治疗方式之一。信息不仅在图表上共享，而且在相关领域的从业者之间以会议或直接信息交流的形式共享。特别是，与从业人员的直接信息共享为每个专业的作用提供了更强的认识。因此，建议针灸师直接信息共享是重要的。

The purpose of the present study is to assess the current status of acupuncture and moxibustion therapy and of information sharing between acupuncturists and other health care professionals at the medical institutions that provide palliative care to cancer patients.As a result of conducting a questionnaire survey and interviews, we found that acupuncture and moxibustion therapy has a role in the management of symptom such as pain and is among the modalities available upon request by patients or their families. Information was shared not only on a chart, but also in the form of conferences or direct information exchange among practitioners in related fields. In particular, direct information sharing with practitioners provided a stronger recognition for the role of each specialty. Therefore, it was suggested that direct information sharing is important for acupuncturists.