Medical Anthology

1183 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Comparing and contrasting eastern and western medicine

Health and illness are areas that have always preoccupied human minds since they have a social as well as a biological basis. Western medical beliefs and practices have come to displace fork and traditional beliefs since it seeks to control this phenomenon through scientific and technical regulation of the body, unlike the traditional beliefs which viewed illnesses on sociological grounds.

The Azande people who live in southern Sudan are a traditional society which believes in existence of ancestral spirits and witchcraft. Witchcraft which was believed to be a mystic and inborn power was possessed by few members of the community. These forces control their world view on different issues including health and illnesses. In this community, illnesses like other misfortunes are caused by witchcraft. Witcraft among the Azande community according to Pritchard helped them to explain issues in the traditional society that science does now. This belief in witchcraft for instance, explains why an individual caught a disease or illness. Even if an Azande member knew that the disease he or he is suffering from, he/she would suspect witchcraft blaming it on the enemies around the person.

Balinese people who live in a small island in Indonesia also practices traditional medicine in place of the modern treatment of illnesses. According to this community illness is as a result of lack of balance between the individual internal, external environment and divine nature. When treating any illness therefore, the traditional healer emphasizes on the sick person’s mental, emotional, and physical condition. The healing also demands that the sick person be fully willing to be well. These traditional healers often known as Balian Tapakan receive their...

... middle of paper ...

...fend their theories and beliefs about certain illnesses (Horton 1970).

Reference List:

Connor, L.H. 1996. Balinese Healing. In L.H. Connor, P Asch and T Asch Jero Takapan: Balinese Healer. Los Angeles: University of California, Ethnographics Press. Chapter 3.

Evans-Pritchard, E.E. 1937. The Notion of Witchcraft Explains Unfortunate Events. In Witchcraft, Oracles and Magic among the Azande. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Pp.63-83. Chapter IV.

Parsons, T. 1951. The Social System. Glencoe, IL: The Free Press. Retrieved From http://www.enotes.com/public-health encyclopedia/illness-sick-role-behavior

Horton R. l970. "African Traditional Thought and Western Science." In B. Wilson, ed. Rationality, NY: Harper and Row, pp. l3l-l7l.7

Nettleton, Sarah .1995. The Sociology of Health and Illness, Polity Press. Retrieved From: http://csp.sagepub.com/content/16/48/33.abstract

Show More
Related

  • The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down - Anne Fadiman

    1624 Words  | 4 Pages

    This book addresses one of the common characteristics, and challenges, of health care today: the need to achieve a working knowledge of as many cultures as possible in health care. The Hmong population of Merced, California addresses the collision between Western medicine and holistic healing traditions of the Hmong immigrants, which plays out a common dilemma in western medical centers: the need to integrate modern western medicinal remedies with aspects of cultural that are good for the well-being of the patient, and the belief of the patient’s ability to recuperate. What we see is a clash, or lack of integration in the example of the story thereof. Lia, a Hmong child with a rare form of epilepsy, must enter the western hospital instead of the Laotian forest. In the forest she would seek out herbs to remedy the problems that beset her, but in the west she is forced to enter the western medical hospital without access to those remedies, which provided not only physical but spiritual comfort to those members of the Hmong culture. The herbs that are supposed to fix her spirit in the forest are not available in the western hospital. The Merced County hospital system clashes with Hmong animist traditions.

    Read More

  • Folk Medicine in Appalachia

    3265 Words  | 7 Pages

    Mathews, Holly F. "Introduction: A Regional Approach and Multidisciplinary Persepctive." Herbal and Magical Medicine: Traditional Healing Today. Ed. James Kirkland, Holly F. Mathews, C. W. Sullivan, III, and Karen Baldwin. Durham: Duke UP, 1992. 1-13. Print.

    Read More

  • Culture In The Hmong Culture

    1911 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Hmong culture is evidence that health worlds exist. Health worlds exist in which health is understood in terms of its social and religious context (SITE BOOK). Spiritual beliefs in the Hmong culture are strongly connected to their view and description of health and illness (SITE 6). Illness in the Hmong culture is believed to be caused by evil spirits, a curse from an unhappy ancestor, or a separation of the soul from the body (California Department of Health Services, 2004). Paja Thao, the shaman in “The Split Horn” emphasizes his belief that a soul can separate from its body and the failure to return back to the body is a sign that the individual will become ill. Like the Chinese concept of ‘Ying and Yang’, Hmong people believe that the balance between the body and soul determines perfect health. Paja Thao believes that a body is attached to seven souls, and when there is a loss in a soul, illness occurs. In contrast to this holistic concept that the Hmong’s believe in, the Western culture is not able to predict when illnesses will occur. Instead, the dominant biomedical model of health focuses on preventing depression through a healthy life style, such as exercise and nutrition

    Read More

  • The Red Path And The Sioux Lakota Virtue

    1018 Words  | 3 Pages

    When comparing the healing philosophy that underpins healing practices of the indigenous tribes it’s evident that all cultures share similar beliefs.

    Read More

  • Indigenous Health Essay

    1074 Words  | 3 Pages

    Through showing the different definitions of health, the authors explain how those different understandings affect patterns of behavior on health depend on different cultures. In addition, an analysis of the models of health demonstrates even western medical approaches to health have different cognitions, same as the Indigenous health beliefs. The most remarkable aspect is a balance, a corresponding core element in most cultures which is an important consideration in Indigenous health as well. From an Indigenous perspective, health is considered as being linked, and keeping the connection is a priority to preserve their health. Consequently, health is a very much culturally determined. Health practitioners should anticipate and respect the cultural differences when they encounter a patient from various cultures. In particular, this article is good to understand why the Indigenous health beliefs are not that different than western medicine views using appropriate examples and comparative composition, even though the implementation the authors indicated is a bit abstract, not

    Read More

  • Native American Medicine and Spiritual Healing

    1088 Words  | 3 Pages

    In fact, Native American medicine men belief is firmly grounded in age-old traditions, legends and teachings. Healing and medical powers have existed since the very beginning of time according to Native American stories. Consequently they have handed down the tribe's antediluvian legends, which i...

    Read More

  • Health Care Provider and Faith Diversity

    1254 Words  | 3 Pages

    This paper will discuss three different religions that a health care provider may care for in the nursing field. It will discuss the spiritual perspective, as well as the critical components of healing, such as through prayer and meditation. The writer will give a brief summary of each religions belief. The three religions that will be discussed in this paper are Native American, Hinduism, and Buddhism. This paper will discuss what is important to people who are cared for of a particular faith by the health care provider who may have an entirely different belief system. The writer will discuss how a patient may view a health care provider who puts aside his or her own beliefs in the interest of the beliefs and practices of the patient that is being cared for. The writer of this paper is of Christian belief and will compare her beliefs of faith and healing with the three previously mentioned religions.

    Read More

  • Informative Essay: What Is Traditional Medicine?

    1221 Words  | 3 Pages

    The philosophy and practice is composed of many different systems of traditional medicine, which are all influenced by prevailing conditions, environment, and geographic area within, where it first evolved into WHO (2005). Although it is a common

    Read More

  • The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down Analysis

    1025 Words  | 3 Pages

    In expansion to these convictions, Hmong likewise have numerous traditions and folks that are negotiated by those of the American standard and therapeutic groups; for instance, some Hmong customarily perform custom creature sacrifice and in view of extremely particular entombment customs and the alarm of every human's numerous souls potentially getting away from, the accepted Hmong convictions don't consider anybody experiencing obtrusive restorative surgery. Hmong medicinal framework is dependent ...

    Read More

  • The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman

    2253 Words  | 5 Pages

    Kleinman, A. 1980. Patients and Healers in the Context of Culture: An Exploration of the Borderland between Anthropology, Medicine, and Psychiatry. University of California Press.

    Read More

  • Native American Medicine

    737 Words  | 2 Pages

    Dharmanda, Shbuhit. (2000). Native American Traditional Medicine. Institute for Traditional Medicine. Retrieved from the World Wide Web October 4, 2000: http//itmonline.org.

    Read More

  • Meditation

    4152 Words  | 9 Pages

    Terrence, Clifford. Diamo Healing: The Buddhist Medicine and Medical Psychiatry of Tibet. Motilal Banarsidass. 2003.

    Read More

  • Biopsychosocial Model Case Study

    1260 Words  | 3 Pages

    The belief that the mind and body were separate, and that all diseases and disorders could be explained by science, founded this conceptual model (Sarafino, 2008). Ergo, this approach saw health care professionals focusing predominately on the physical processes and looked at biochemistry, pathology and other related fields to explain, diagnose and treat illness or disease (Wade, 2004). As a consequence, medical intervention was the primary method used to return the health of an individual to a pre-illness state ‘free from pain, disease or defect’ (Williams, 2016, p.1). However, this model did not take into account any of the external considerations that lead up to the development of certain health conditions. Nor did it consider that a person’s mind could play a role in becoming ill or getting well (Sarafino, 2008). (DOES THIS EXPLAIN IN BETTER

    Read More

  • Western Culture Essay

    1605 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Western Culture focuses on two methods of healing: chemically engineered compounds and surgical procedures. For instance, in the United States, individuals have the option of antidepressants with or without the aid of cognitive therapy(Selhub 2007) Most individuals choose the quick approach due to its alluring quick fix scheme. These contrasts different from the Eastern Culture’s main focus: the power of the mind and the energy from within: mind, body, and soul. The effects of Eastern Culture’s approach have been proven to be enduring and beneficial to the individuals involved. The Western Culture would greatly

    Read More

  • Witchcraft in Contemporary African Society

    2504 Words  | 6 Pages

    The Enlightenment and the emerging of modern rationalism have paved the way to a worldview where the suspicion of witchcraft is not needed to explain the mysterious phenomena of this world. This is not the case in Africa. The belief in the existence of witches, evil persons who are able to harm others by using mystical powers, is part of the common cultural knowledge. Samuel Waje Kunhiyop states, “Almost all African societies believe in witchcraft in one form or another. Belief in witchcraft is the traditional way of explaining the ultimate cause of evil, misfortune or death.” The African worldview is holistic. In this perception, things do not just happen. What happens, either good or bad, is traced back to human action, including “ancestors who can intervene by blessing or cursing the living.” Witches, on the other hand, harm because they want to destroy life. Every misfortune or problem can be related to witchcraft, especially when natural explanation is not satisfactory.

    Read More

More about Medical Anthology

Open Document