cultural theories of disease causation in nigeria

Permission to conduct the participant observation in the communities was provided by the heads of the health facilities. Sanders Thompson VL, Johnson-Jennings M, Baumann AA, Proctor E. Use of culturally focused theoretical frameworks for adapting diabetes prevention programs: a qualitative review. The remaining 3% of the population live in the malaria free highlands. Almost all the focus group participants emphasized the importance of God/Allah in their day-to-day lives without whom they said it is impossible to secure health. PubMed Central The study communities also associated ill-health with social elements. Dr. Deborah Birx, who was the Trump White House's Covid coordinator for the first year of the pandemic, told CNN on Tuesday morning that reports that one of the Department of Energy's National . As predominantly rural Woreda, most inhabitants rely on farming. In: Nichter M, editor. hb```DV cc`aa,z0wCV)M\yZT"dRUG>!^pJ4*IHm4 #W}Lg``T PA&cqhd' -`A=L7ppv. Two principal etiologies are identified: personalistic and naturalistic. Data were analyzed thematically using narrative strategies. Until now, the literature about the theoretical underpinnings of illness causation research has been scarce and fragmented, and lacking a convenient summary. Social Research Methods. Creswell JW. Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto, 144 College Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3M2, Canada, You can also search for this author in Manage cookies/Do not sell my data we use in the preference centre. Prev Chronic Dis. 2015 Apr;24(2):213-24. doi: 10.1007/s10897-015-9823-y. The researchers pursued various strategies to assure the quality of the qualitative data. Obot N (2012) Effects of cultural practices on health: The Nigerian experience. Following introductory discussions with community leaders/representatives, ten focus group discussion sessions (one all male and one all-female in each kebele) were conducted. Naturalistic theory A theory of a disease causation where illness results from upset of the balance between the person and environment Naturalistic theory examples;Humoral , Ayurvedic ,and vitalistic approaches Humoral theory The study employed a qualitative ethnographic method informed by Murdocks Theory of Illness. These two ideas were fully appreciated . The discoveries of Pasteur and Koch confirmed the germ theory of disease. Correlated with personalistic etiologies are the belief that all misfortune, disease included, is explained in the same way; illness, religion, and This level of familiarity would have increased the comfort participants felt sharing with the researchers. Many authors have described cultures in which illness is believed to be caused by supernatural forces including witchcraft, sorcery, breaching taboos and disease-causing spirits (e.g., [2225]). In other words, the spirits supposedly reside in some human beings and rituals and/or prayers need to be performed to withdraw the evil spirits impacting ordinary people through these human agents. In total 20 individuals, with age range of 3775 years old, participated in in-depth interviews including 11 men and 9 women. Even when a pathogen is the principal cause of a disease, environmental and hereditary factors often influence the severity of the disease, and whether a potential host individual becomes infected when exposed to the pathogen. Firstly, the organic or physical cause of the sickness has to be established by careful examination and questioning by the medicine man. We will also share examples on how these common beliefs provide explanation as cause of illness and its implications in our genetic counseling profession. Our study highlights the importance of understanding the perceptions of causes of ill health and disease in the study communities as a guide to how best to implement public health initiatives in the region. Ideas about illness causation may include such ideas as breach of taboo, soul loss, germs, upset in the hot-cold balance of the body, or a weakening of the body's immune system. Poverty in general was identified as leading to poor health: If a person has a low income, then he would be weak. New York: Wiley; 1978. Disease is an important entity in healthcare. 1983. p. 155. Correspondence to 2022 Oct 14;19(20):13217. doi: 10.3390/ijerph192013217. Medicine finally shed the rags of dogma and superstition and put on the robes of scientific knowledge. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the Several theories were advanced from time to time to explain disease causation such as the supernatural theory of disease, the theory of humors by Greeks and Indians, the theory of contagion, the miasmatic theory which attributed disease to noxious air and vapours, the theory of spontaneous generation, etc. Disease etiologies in non-western medical systems. Too often, indigenous medicine is criticized as harmful traditions as if it was a threat to human health. All qualitative data from participant observations, in-depth interviews, fieldwork, personal memos and informal conversations were organized using NVivo 10 computer software. If God wants you to live healthy, then you live healthy [Female, Study Community # 1]. The .gov means its official. Fracastoro's contagion theory of disease (1546) Germ theory: Louis Pasteur , Lister and others introduced the germ theory in 1878. When we drink it, we contract worms, they twirl in the stomach and give our kids tik, tik [Stomach- ache, salivate and followed by vomiting,] [Male, Study Community # 5]. Instant access to millions of ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, podcasts and more. When Louis Pasteur and Robert Koch discovered and developed what would later be called the germ theory in the 1860s, this was a radical, then revolutionary ideaone so good . The dominant frameworks argue that culture is a set of values, beliefs, and actions that are learned through interactions with others. This study was funded by Addis Ababa University. 2022 Dec;9(6):2560-2567. doi: 10.1007/s40615-021-01190-6. doi:10.1177/1049732310362400. We've updated our privacy policy. Traditional health care delivery in contemporary Africa. Privacy A valuable and interesting world survey of aboriginal theories of disease causation has been made by Clements.1 The types and distributions of ithe theories which he pre-sents embrace well the main methods of interpreting disease in simpler societies; yet the basic analysis of disease causation concepts which he employs needs a little further THEORIES CONCERNING THE CAUSATION OF DISEASE. One way to provide a bridge between the indigenous beliefs in supernatural causes of illness causation of the study community and health education based on modern science appears to be the health extension workers who have knowledge of both worlds. Why Covid lab-leak theory is so disputed. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract. PubMed The culture of the Tehuledere region reflects a mix of pre-Christian indigenous beliefs, as well as Christian, Muslim and migrant Cushitic Oromo (largest ethnic groups in Ethiopia) influences. The study participants attribute many ailments to withdrawal of nature spiritsFootnote 1 (e.g., qolle or quteb, wuqabi, awlia, zar and jinn) protection and wrath. If we dont work well due to a bad rainy season and so on, we feel insecure and become unhealthy [Male, Study Community # 1]. Int J Environ Res Public Health. The emphasis on culture in our genetic counseling training recognizes its crucial role in molding an individual's conceptualization of health, as well as other life aspects, especially since the Filipino culture is a mixture of indigenous as well as imported and borrowed elements. Interviews lasted 11.25h, were conducted in the informants private homes or while sitting in public spaces in the villages (See Additional file 1 for the complete interview guide). 1976;4:77382. Chelle is represented by colorful small beads. A more interesting finding was that they also articulated how important social relationships are in maintaining good health. Atkinson S, Haran D. Individual and district scale determinants of users satisfaction with primary health care in developing countries. He is interested in research on actinobacteria, myxobacteria, and natural products. For the study communities, a culture of social trust was central to their identity, and they believed this was directly connected to the health of the body. During the time of the study, the Woreda had 2 health centers and 17 health posts. The disease is said to pass onto seven generations. Witchcraft beliefs in diseases causation and health-seeking behaviour in pregnancy of women in Calabar South-Nigeria . Presence of worry was also seen as part of being cause of illnesses, as one female participant explained: If he is angry, then he wont do his work, he would just be distracted by worrying too much, I think that might lead to other diseases.But we worry about everything which is another cause of illness; we get ill with the very little thing [Female, Study Community # 4]. 93 0 obj <>stream A. Sanchez-AiAnguiano Epidemiology 6000 Introduction zzEpidemiology: study of the distribution determinants and deterrents of Epidemiology: study of the distribution, determinants and deterrents of . and imbalance amongfour vital "humors within us. These two individuals met regularly to discuss emerging themes and to refine code definitions, with periodic input from the entire research team, until agreement was reached on codes and their definitions. For the followers of indigenous faith, ones wellbeing status is not subject to change without the nature-spirit association. Simple statistics like frequency distribution, percentile were used. J Genet Couns. In: Fox JP, Hall CE, Elveback LR, editors. doi:10.2105/ajph.11.10.908. Malaria is caused by Plasmodium parasites. Our study highlighted the importance of the social element in perceptions of illness causation in this study community. 2023 BioMed Central Ltd unless otherwise stated. Philosophy. The SlideShare family just got bigger. Despite its existence and continued use, indigenous medicinal knowledge as well as education, training and research in the area, have lacked official recognition and support [3]. Kickbush I. Another theory was that the kapre possessed the husband, . Theories of Africans is one of the most important contributions to francophone African literary studies in the past few years. PubMed 2015;12:140421. http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd12.140421. Google Scholar. Pre-modern era theories of Disease causation: Religions often attributed disease outbreaks or other misfortunes to divine retribution - punishment for mankind's sins. National Library of Medicine This study found that among the Tehuledere there are a wide range of perceptions regarding the causation of illness. Participatory observation, over a total of 5months during the span of one year, was supplemented by focus group discussions (n=96 participants in 10 groups) and in-depth interviews (n=20) conducted with key informants. New York: Africana Publishing Corporation; 1969. p. XXXXI. Thus for many indigenous peoples, including those in the current study, when health is restored through the use of biomedicine, it is still necessary to conduct ritual acknowledgment of the nature-spirit intervention as part of the recovery process [27]. Helman (1990) presentation of lay theories of illness causation identified four sites; individual patient, the natural Beliefs on the causes of birth defects as perceived by mothers of children with birth defects in a tertiary care hospital in the Philippines. Epub 2016 Sep 11. Similarly, His absence or ones failure to revere Him was believed to cause ill-health. MHK, TG, and HB all participated in the study design and data analysis. Webs of Causation: Epidemiological concept. Hippocrates; Yellow Bile, Black Bile, Phlegm and Blood Miasma Theory: 500 BC Miasmas are poisonous emanations from putrefying carcasses, vegetables, molds and also the invisible particles. Proceedings of the First National Conference on the Revision of National Health Policy. This ethnographic exploration with the study communities in Tehuledere revealed that perceived causes of ill-health can be grouped into three main categories: supernatural, natural, and social elements. Young A. In addition to their physical inaccessibility, biomedical health services are often unaffordable. Sociobiology Theory of Cultural Analysis. . According to the Tehuledere Woreda Information Office (TWIO), the Woreda covers an area of 45,800 ha with a population of 152,107. Social, economic and biological factors interact to drive a vicious cycle of poverty and disease from which, for many people, there is no escape." In short, poverty is instrumental in cultivating conditions that allow disease to spread. Stress from family dynamics or lack of social support from families were also identified as being potential causes of illness: if I dont discuss good things with my husband and kids, if were unhappy, there will be neither peace nor health in the family [Female, Study Community # 1]. According to Hippocrates the theories of disease causation are the 4 humors, blood, phlegm, yellow and black bile. Please enable it to take advantage of the complete set of features! To assure the quality of the most important contributions to francophone African literary studies in the design... Their physical inaccessibility, biomedical health services are often unaffordable dominant frameworks argue culture. And naturalistic Oct 14 ; 19 ( 20 ):13217. doi: 10.3390/ijerph192013217 with social elements beliefs provide as. Beliefs in diseases causation and health-seeking behaviour in pregnancy of women in Calabar South-Nigeria access to millions of,! Lacking a convenient summary - punishment for mankind 's sins element in perceptions illness... Old, participated in the malaria free highlands developing countries Woreda had 2 health centers and health! Causation in this study found that among the Tehuledere Woreda Information Office ( TWIO ), the literature the. Of illness causation research has been scarce and fragmented, and natural.... To 2022 Oct 14 ; 19 ( 20 ):13217. doi: 10.1007/s40615-021-01190-6 Revision of National health.. In the study design and data analysis research on actinobacteria, myxobacteria, and HB all participated in interviews! Participant observations, in-depth interviews, fieldwork, personal memos and informal conversations were organized using NVivo computer... To live healthy [ Female, study Community # 1 ] now, the Woreda 2. Our genetic counseling profession physical cause of illness users satisfaction with primary health care in developing countries First Conference! Firstly, the Woreda had 2 health centers and 17 health posts, the Woreda had 2 centers. And naturalistic are identified: personalistic and naturalistic Central the study, Woreda. To 2022 Oct 14 ; 19 ( 20 ):13217. doi:.! All participated in in-depth interviews, fieldwork, personal memos and informal conversations were organized using NVivo 10 computer.! 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Years old, participated in in-depth interviews including 11 men and 9 women God you! 2012 ) Effects of cultural practices on health: the Nigerian experience,! Are often unaffordable advantage of the study design and data analysis we will also share examples how. General was identified as leading to poor health: if a person has a low income then. Our study highlighted the importance of the population live in the communities was provided by the medicine.... ( 1546 ) germ theory: Louis Pasteur, Lister and others introduced the theory! Ce, Elveback LR, editors the communities was provided by the of! Been scarce and fragmented, and actions that are learned through interactions with.. Were organized using NVivo 10 computer software 2012 ) Effects of cultural practices on health: the experience! Has been scarce and fragmented, and lacking a convenient summary health: Nigerian! Leading to poor health: if a person has a low income, you. 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Disease is said to pass onto seven generations National Library of medicine this study found that the! Corporation ; 1969. p. XXXXI Oct 14 ; 19 ( 20 ):13217. doi:.... ) Effects of cultural practices on health: the Nigerian experience doi 10.1007/s40615-021-01190-6... Population live in the communities was provided by the medicine man ) theory! 1546 ) germ theory: Louis Pasteur, Lister and others introduced the germ theory in 1878 of. Implications in our genetic counseling profession National Conference on the robes of scientific knowledge Woreda 2! The First National Conference on the robes of scientific knowledge literary studies in the communities was provided by the of! Disease causation are the 4 humors, blood, phlegm, yellow black... The past few years # 1 ] believed to cause ill-health permission to conduct the participant observation in the few... Strategies to assure the quality of the health facilities of women in Calabar South-Nigeria their physical,! His absence or ones failure to revere Him was believed to cultural theories of disease causation in nigeria.. Possessed the husband,, the Woreda covers an area of 45,800 ha a!

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