Asian Cultural Diversity and Health Care

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Recommended: Cultural considerations issues in health care

The Asian culture on health care is very interesting and different from western medicine. It is not just drawing blood and finding too many white body blood cells in the blood stream therefore saying there is an impurity. Asian health is more about balance of the body’s mechanics. They believe the mind and body work together, in synchronization in a balanced state. They use a practice called yin and yang, which is hot and cold. The use of plants for treatment of illness is common practice in Asian culture. Good nutrition plays a big part in their health. A diet of mainly fish and vegetables is the healthy choice in the culture. Some of the practices for therapy include acupuncture and coin rolling.
Acupuncture focuses on pressure points on the body and stimulates natural healing to balance the body. The practice of acupuncture covers 306 fixed points of the body. The practitioner uses nine needles placed in specific point on the body to release yin (cold) or yang (heat) and create a balance between the two. The treatment can range from cancer, arthritis, or the common cold, but is mainly used for treatment of pain relief. There is also qi and chi (http://diversityresources.com) and is the flow of energy throughout the body which is something like yin and yang. It is all about a balance in the body for healing and good health. Too much of either will create a disturbance in the energy flow in the body and will require treatment of the use of yin and yang principles.

Another practice in medicine in Asian culture is coining. This practice is more customary in the Chinese culture. Coining is widely practiced by Southeast Asians, such as the Thai and Lao. Because coining leaves physical marks, some patients are sometimes mis...

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There are many things a healthcare providers should consider when dealing with other cultures such as religious beliefs and medical practices. My goal is not to insult or cause harm to anyone. I have done research on different cultures and their practices to be prepared to deal with issues that can arise with treatment of illnesses. It is important to take other cultures medical practices seriously and not offend a person’s medical theories that have been performed for hundreds of years.

Works Cited
"Asian Community." Asian Community. Creative Commons Attribution-, n.d. Web. 07 Mar. 2014.
"Culture-Sensitive Health Care: Asian." Culture-Sensitive Health Care: Asian. Diversity Resources, Inc. Amherst, MA., 2000. Web. 07 Mar. 2014.
"In Traditional Chinese Medicine, What Is Coining?" WiseGEEK. Copyright © 2003 - 2014 Conjecture Corporation, n.d. Web. 07 Mar. 2014.

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