1. Alternative medicines are not yet fully understood, so their effects shouldn't be simply discarded.
1.1. Many alternative medicines have similar effects as contemporary medicine and be more acceptable to the patient.
1.1.1. "Complementary and alternative medicine for prevention and treatment of the common cold."
1.2. Even if an alternative medicine has no actual viable effect on treatment, it could be use as a therapeutic aid.
1.2.1. Alternative medicine familiar with the patient's traditional values could reassure them or be used as a psychological aid in addition to contemporary treatment or surgery.
1.2.1.1. "Complementary & Alternative Therapies in Nursing."
1.2.2. "Complementary and alternative therapies for pain management in labour."
2. Increased societal diversification necessitates increased awareness of diverse forms of medicine.
2.1. Patient could refuse treatment by contemporary medicine. Nurse would have to comply or convince otherwise.
2.1.1. "Fitness to practise for student nurses: principles, standards and procedures."
2.1.2. "Nurses' knowledge, attitudes, and professional use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM): A survey at five metropolitan hospitals in Adelaide."
2.2. If patient is taking herbal supplements or other alternative medicine, this could interact with medication.
2.2.1. Nurse would need an understanding of the pharmacological effects of the medicine to make decisions.
2.2.1.1. "Editorial: The need for complementary and alternative medicine familiarisation in undergraduate nurse education."
2.3. Nurse, being an educator, could try to inform the patient about not using alternative medicine, or using it practically.
2.3.1. Some herbal medicines have actual pharmaceutical effects, and the patient could make better decisions about what to choose.
2.3.2. "Fitness to Practise for Student Nurses: Principles, Standards and Procedures."