Determinants of Use For Traditional Medicinal Practices Within the Vietnamese American Community (original) (raw)
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Journal of POPULATION and SOCIAL STUDIES (Online), 2022
The paper explores traditional medicine beliefs among older Vietnamese persons in the Hoc Mon district. Twenty-two respondents aged 62 to 82 years and nine key informants were recruited. Bourdieu's theory of practice was used to analyze data through thematic analysis. The main findings explore two models of traditional medicine used in the aging population to control chronic diseases and post-stroke: (1) the switch from western to traditional medicine and (2) the use of both western and traditional medicine. Moreover, traditional medicine use is influenced by beliefs about susceptibility and severity of disease, the pros and cons of traditional medicine, and beliefs about traditional medicine practitioners. This exploratory study may shed more light on the promotion of traditional medicine for health and health management for the aging population in Vietnam.
Natural Product Communications
In Vietnam, two types of traditional medicine (TM) are practiced: thuoc nam, medicine of the South, and thuoc bac, medicine of the North, both of which are largely based on herbal drugs used by different Vietnamese ethnic groups. This review presents recently published information from various databases regarding TM, especially herbal drugs, and its integration with Western medical practices outside and inside Vietnam. We first discuss the integration of traditional and modern health concepts by Vietnamese immigrants living outside Vietnam. Next, we describe native and emigrated health education and practices of pharmacy students, health professionals, and citizens living in Vietnam. Finally, we report the recent biological validation of medicinal plants and non-herbal therapies emerging from Vietnamese TM and their current and potential medical uses as identified by Western approaches. The main example described here involves utilization of the tree Artocarpus tonkinensis by the et...
Use of traditional medicine in Lao PDR
Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 2005
Objectives: Exploring the attitudes and knowledge of household members and health staff in Lao PDR regarding the use of traditional medicine. Background: Along with modern medicine, traditional medicine utilisation is officially supported in Laos, being part of the cultural heritage and considered useful for this low-income country in relation to the problems with access to modern pharmaceuticals. Methods: The study population comprised 600 households from one lowland (Pakse) and one mountainous (Paksong) district. In a stratified two-stage sampling procedure, household surveys were conducted and focus group discussions (FGD) were performed among health staff and villagers in the same districts. Results: Seventy-seven per cent of the households stated the ever use of traditional medicine including herbal medicines, sauna, massage and acupuncture. The main reason given was perceived efficacy. Traditional medicine was used for both chronic and acute diseases. The FGD revealed the perceived need to have training courses for traditional medicine providers and to have a medicinal garden in the villages. Utilisation was similar in lowland and mountainous districts as well as in urban and rural areas. Conclusions: The study indicates that traditional medicine is widely used and perceived as effective by a fairly large proportion of Lao people. The findings may form a basis for health sector reforms that are congruent with perceived local needs, e.g. in establishing a strategic plan for the development of the traditional medicine sector in Lao PDR.
Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use in a Community Population in Lao PDR
African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines, 2016
Background: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and associated factors of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine (TCAM) use in a community setting in a central province of Lao PDR. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional community survey in 4 urban and 4 rural districts was conducted with the International Complementary and Alternative Medicine Questionnaire (I-CAM-Q). Results: Of the 1600 participants in the survey, the overall prevalence of any TCAM use (providers, products or self-care) was 40.2% (TCAM provider= 14.8%, TCAM products=34.1%, and self-help TCAM=4.5%) in the past 12 months.The most frequently used herbal medicines were Maringa pterygosperma (12.6%), followed by Curcuma longa L. (9.4%), Curcuma xanthorrhiza (9.4%) and Centella asiatica (7.2%). Many of the TCAM products were used for the purpose of health tonic or nourishments and for a number of chronic conditions (gout, dyslipidaemia, hypertension, diabetes, asthma, cancer, migraine, mental disorder, and gastrointestinal disorders). In multivariate logistic regression, lower educational level, rural residence and having chronic conditions was associated with any TCAM use. Conclusions: TCAM use seems to be common in Lao PDR and better knowledge on the use of different TCAM modalities in this population may improve patient management.
Studies on Ethno-Medicine, 2015
The objective of this study was to conduct a systematic review of published and unpublished research investigating the prevalence of Traditional Medicine, Complementary and Alternative Medicine (TCAM) use in the general and clinical population in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Results found that the use of TCAM was the highest in Malaysia (55.6%), followed by Singapore (among older adults) (42.7%), Philippines (6.3%), Cambodia (5.4%), Vietnam (3.5%), Thailand (2.6%) and Indonesia (2.0%). The prevalence of TCAM use of patients in biomedical health facilities was generally high such as cancer (56%-84.5%), medical patients and/or patients with chronic conditions (22.7%-66.7%), diabetic patients (47.8%-56%), asthmatic patients (27.2%-41%), and HIV patients (31%-78%). TCAM is used by substantial proportions of the general and clinical population, but differences in study design and methodological limitations make it difficult to compare prevalence estimates.
BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2015
Background: Traditional medicine (TM) still plays an important role in a number of health care systems around the world, especially across Asian and African countries. In Vietnam, however, little is known about preference for traditional medicine use. This study assessed the prevalence of use, preference, satisfaction, and willingness to pay for TM services amongst rural ethnic minority community. Methods: A cross-sectional survey in three provinces in the North and South of Vietnam. Results: The results showed a high level of satisfaction with TM services, with more than 90 % of respondents reporting improved health status given the use of TM. Indicators for preference of TM over modern medicine are a longer distance to health station; being in an ethnic minority; being female; and having had higher service satisfaction. Although we did not have a comparison group, the high level of satisfaction with TM services is likely the result of a project targeting community health workers and the public regarding TM education and access promotion. Indeed, the community health workers are credited with relaying the information about TM more than any other sources. This suggests the importance of community health workers and community health centers in the promotion of TM use. Conclusions: Ethnic minority people prefer the use of traditional medicine services that supports the expansion of national programs and promotion of traditional medications.
Cross-national differences in the holistic use of traditional East Asian medicine in East Asia
Health promotion international, 2016
Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has been one of the popular strategies for health promotion. Traditional East Asian medicine (TEAM) is one of the most popular CAM practices in the world and there are suggestions that its holistic utilization is important for users to gain its effects for health promotion. In this context, this study investigates the extent to which TEAM users in East Asian countries utilize various modalities of TEAM holistically. It provides a model that explains cross-national differences in the extent of the holistic use of TEAM between China, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. Using the 2010 East Asian Social Survey, regression models specify the relationship between the holistic use of TEAM and the geographical location (country). The presence of TEAM doctors who hold the comprehensive and exclusive practice rights over TEAM is found to be conducive to the holistic utilization of various TEAM modalities. Thus, Taiwanese and Koreans use TEAM more holistically...
BMC complementary and alternative medicine, 2016
The purpose of our study was to determine the prevalence of traditional, complementary and alternative medicine (TCAM) use in patients with chronic diseases in lower Mekong countries. A cross-sectional study was conducted in a health care setting using a random sample of 4799 adult patients (Mean age: 52.3 years, SD = 22.7) with chronic diseases in Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand. The measure included the International Questionnaire to measure usage of complementary and alternative medicine (I-CAM). The 1 year prevalence of consulting TCAM providers was 26.0%; 27.0% in Cambodia, 26.3% in Thailand, 23.9% in Vietnam. The most commonly consulted TCAM providers were the herbalist (17.3%), massage therapist (6.0%), and acupuncturist (5.5%). For all different types of TCAM providers more than 80% of participants perceived the consultation as very or somewhat helpful. The own use of herbal medicine was 41.0%, own use of vitamins 26.5% and the own use of other supplements 9.7% in the past 12...
A qualitative study of culturally embedded factors in complementary and alternative medicine use
BMC complementary and alternative medicine, 2018
Within the intercultural milieu of medical pluralism, a nexus of worldviews espousing distinct explanatory models of illness, our research aims at exploring factors leading to complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use with special attention to their cultural context. The results are based on medical anthropological fieldwork (participant observation and in-depth interviews) spanning a period from January 2015 to May 2017 at four clinics of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Budapest, Hungary. Participant observation involved 105 patients (males N = 42); in-depth interviews were conducted with patients (N = 9) and practitioners (N = 9). The interviews were coded with Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis; all information was aggregated employing Atlas.ti software. In order to avoid the dichotomization of "push and pull factors," results obtained from the fieldwork and interviews were structured along milestones of the patient journey. These points of reference includ...