The desi ways: traditional health practices of South Asian women in Canada.

Although many South Asian immigrants have made their homes in Canada, little research has examined health behaviors in this population and fewer studies have examined the use of traditional health practices. As part of a larger study on health-seeking patterns of South Asian women living in Western Canada, an analysis was done on the use of traditional health practices. Using critical ethnographic methods, data were collected through face-to-face individual interviews (n = 50), focus group discussions (n = 12), and community meetings with a cross section of women in the South Asian community. Interviews were conducted in the language of each participant's choice. Thematic analysis was done on the transcribed interviews. Women's descriptions of traditional health practices varied and consisted of home remedies, dietary regimens, prayers, rituals, and consultation with hakims, veds, babajis, pundits, homeopaths, and jyotshis. Choosing to use traditional health practices was influenced by family members, the nature and severity of problems, beliefs and prior experiences, and the feasibility of using these practices. Traditional health practices were used on a daily or episodic basis. Women rarely used traditional health practices exclusively. Traditional health practices were used for small problems or when conventional medicines did not work. For women to meet their health needs, health care providers must be culturally sensitive and respect women's choices to use traditional health practices.

Rapid screening of cervical smears as a method of internal quality control. For how long should we rescreen?

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness of rapid screening of cervical smears as a method of internal quality control with 10% random rescreening. STUDY DESIGN: From June 5 to July 14, 1995 (6 weeks), all consecutive cervical smears received in the department (n = 8,800) were entered into the study and were prescreened for a duration of 30 seconds (n = 2,938), 1 minute (n = 2,925) or 2 minutes (n = 2,937) over a period of 2 weeks each. RESULTS: Rapid screening of all negative and unsatisfactory smears detected more cytologic abnormalities than would be expected with 10% random rescreening. Thirty-second rapid screening of all negative and unsatisfactory smears was more efficient in detecting false negatives than screening a proportion of the smears for longer periods of time. Rapid screening was also a very effective method of detecting severe cytologic abnormalities in unscreened smears, detecting over 90% of high grade lesions. CONCLUSION: Rapid rescreening of negative and unsatisfactory cervical smears is recommended as a very effective method of internal quality control. It is superior to 10% random rescreening in reducing the false negative rate. Thirty-second rapid rescreening is the most efficient period for which smears should be screened. Rapid screening of unscreened smears could be used as a means of selecting patients for prompt referral when a laboratory backlog exists.