Ayako Lovee - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Ayako Lovee

Course Description: Every culture and society has had to deal with illness and thus has well-deve... more Course Description: Every culture and society has had to deal with illness and thus has well-developed concepts about the healing process, healers, diagnosis, medical treatment, medical knowledge and healing practices. This course offers a cross cultural exploration of medical systems, healers and healing approaches. In Healers and Healing Practices we examine differences and similarities in the ways that people approach illness and healing by relying heavily on an abundance of examples from various cultures, including that of the United States. We examine illness causation and classification theories, diagnostic practices, therapeutic procedures, preventive care, the assumptions that underlie medical concepts and practices, and medicine's relationship to the social, cultural, and technological environments in which it is constructed and practiced. The course focuses on the role of the healer in the context of culture and will examine physicians, shamans, witch doctors, curanderos/as, midwives, wise men and women, and other healers. The course also explores the use of medicinal herbs, music, healing aids, and pharmaceuticals in the healing process. Informed self-reflection and critical analysis of one's own worldview assumptions and medical beliefs system are fundamental to the course. Prerequisites: None Course Objectives: • Distinguish between different illness etiologies • Understand the role of the healer in distinct medical systems • Know the fundamentals of the Great Medical Traditions • Compare patient/provider relationships in varied medical systems • Learn that there are many ways of knowing and doing regarding health and illness • Engage in critical thinking regarding the relationship between health care and culture, environment, and economy • Appreciate the traditional relationship between medicine and religion • Employ the holistic perspective when attempting to understand human phenomena, including health care and medical treatment

Course Description: Every culture and society has had to deal with illness and thus has well-deve... more Course Description: Every culture and society has had to deal with illness and thus has well-developed concepts about the healing process, healers, diagnosis, medical treatment, medical knowledge and healing practices. This course offers a cross cultural exploration of medical systems, healers and healing approaches. In Healers and Healing Practices we examine differences and similarities in the ways that people approach illness and healing by relying heavily on an abundance of examples from various cultures, including that of the United States. We examine illness causation and classification theories, diagnostic practices, therapeutic procedures, preventive care, the assumptions that underlie medical concepts and practices, and medicine's relationship to the social, cultural, and technological environments in which it is constructed and practiced. The course focuses on the role of the healer in the context of culture and will examine physicians, shamans, witch doctors, curanderos/as, midwives, wise men and women, and other healers. The course also explores the use of medicinal herbs, music, healing aids, and pharmaceuticals in the healing process. Informed self-reflection and critical analysis of one's own worldview assumptions and medical beliefs system are fundamental to the course. Prerequisites: None Course Objectives: • Distinguish between different illness etiologies • Understand the role of the healer in distinct medical systems • Know the fundamentals of the Great Medical Traditions • Compare patient/provider relationships in varied medical systems • Learn that there are many ways of knowing and doing regarding health and illness • Engage in critical thinking regarding the relationship between health care and culture, environment, and economy • Appreciate the traditional relationship between medicine and religion • Employ the holistic perspective when attempting to understand human phenomena, including health care and medical treatment