Notre Dame of Maryland University opens school for integrative health

Notre Dame of Maryland University (NDMU) has become the first comprehensive university in the United States with a school dedicated solely to integrative health.

The university announced Tuesday, that it had completed a merger with the Maryland University of Integrative Health (MUIH), bringing MUIH’s programs, faculty, staff and students into Notre Dame. 

The move marks the first merger of two private, four-year degree programs in Maryland in more than 50 years, according to university President Marylou Yam.

Merger details

The merger adds about 500 graduate students to Notre Dame’s population and expands its offerings with more than 20 primarily online graduate degrees and certificate programs in integrative health and wellness.

Programs include nutrition, health and wellness coaching, herbal medicine, integrative health studies, Ayurveda and yoga therapy.

“Notre Dame already has a robust portfolio in the conventional health care program space, and so we felt that this would be very complementary to the work that we’ve been doing,” Yam told The Baltimore Banner.

Christina Sax, the former provost and vice president for academic and student affairs at the Maryland University of Integrative Health, will serve as the dean of Notre Dame of Maryland’s School of Integrative Health, the Banner reported.   

What is integrative medicine?

The World Health Organization defines integrative medicine as an interdisciplinary and evidence-based approach to health and well-being by using a combination of biomedical and traditional and/or complementary medical knowledge, skills and practices.

According to Mayo Clinic, integrative medicine uses nontraditional therapies alongside mainstream treatments. 

Examples include acupuncture, massage therapy, meditation, resilience training and dietary supplements. Health care professionals can incorporate these practices to complement, not replace, standard medical care.

According to the National Institutes of Health, the percentage of individuals using at least one of seven common complementary health approaches rose from 19.2% in 2002 to 36.7% in 2022.