Individual case studies can provide details of how healing worked in a particular individual, with a particular approach, applied by a particular healer, as interpreted by the writer. This approach allows for a great richness of detail in all of these aspects of the study of healing. It has the weakness that it may represent biases of any of the participants rather than findings that might be found by other participants.

This is a worth-while beginning for the study of healing, particularly when the observer and reporter is a health care professional who can place the findings in the context of conventional medical care. The danger here is that a conventional observer may miss details that are relevant to healers, healees, and the process of healing. The anthropological literature is rife with such observations, where the scientists presumed that the interventions of shamans and medicine men were no more than rote rituals, and completely missed the biological energy medicine and spiritual components of the interventions.

This is likewise a worth-while beginning when the observer is a healer or healee, because these participants may provide subjective details that would otherwise be unavailable to the reader. The danger here is that people who are not medically trained may mistake a placebo reaction or normal waxing and waning of illness for a healing effect. For instance, I have repeatedly had healers tell me that they have excellent results with curing warts. The fact is, warts respond to almost any form of suggestion.

There are more general problems with single case studies. If one person responds to a particular treatment there will always be questions about whether any improvements might have been due to spontaneous remission of the problem. That is, there could be something peculiar to that person which made it possible for her or him to change, regardless of any treatments that might have been given.

Many diseases have irregular courses of progression. Arthritis may be terrible for months and years and then ease up, stop its progress, or remit.

Similarly, symptoms of multiple sclerosis, a neurological disease with sensory and muscular problems, can wax and wane over periods of months and years.

Some of the factors that may help to substantiate a single case report of spiritual healing success include:

- a diagnosis of the person made by a doctor

- symptoms are chronic

- the disease is not generally known for waxing and waning of symptoms or for spontaneous remissions

- previous conventional treatments failed

- there was no other treatment given concurrently

- there were no dramatic changes in psychological, relational, social, or other conditions around the time of the healing that could have contributed to the observed changes

- improvements occurred immediately following spiritual healing

- improvements include objective, measurable changes (not just "feeling better")

- changes include objective observations

- changes are confirmed by a doctor or other health care professional

- laboratory tests confirm the reported changes

 
References

See annotated bibliography of single-case studies