Bridging the Gap: Exploring the Atitudes and Beliefs of Nurses and Patients about Coexisting Traditional and Biomedical Healthcare Systems in a Rural Setting in KwaZulu-Natal

RESUMO

Objectives: Health care in South Africa takes place within a diverse cultural context and includes perceptions about health that strongly link to cultural beliefs and values. Biomedical healthcare professionals; particularly nurses; are exposed to and expected to cope with cultural challenges on a daily basis; with little or no training on how to do so. In this paper; we explore nurse and patient attitudes to and beliefs about how the systems of health care coexist; what issues this raises and how nurses and patients address these issues in their daily practice. Design: The study employed an exploratory; qualitative research design. Setting and subjects: Four in-depth focus group discussions were conducted with nurses and patients at a deep rural; district hospital in northern KwaZulu-Natal. Participants were selected based on their availability and willingness to contribute to the discussion. Results: Traditional and biomedical healthcare systems coexist and are used simultaneously with the healthcare-seeking pattern of patients traversing multiple systems of care. Currently; patients and nurses have developed strategies to address this by steering a pragmatic course to minimise risks; and by doing so; bridging the gap between the two healthcare mediums. Conclusion: Further research is required to understand which illnesses are primarily seen as traditional; how this gap can be effectively addressed; and how different healthcare co-delivery models can best be utilised and evaluated