Intercultural health and ethnobotany: how to improve healthcare for underserved and minority communities?

Abstract

Ethnopharmacological relevance: The present conceptual review explores intercultural healthcare--defined as the integration of traditional medicine and biomedicine as complementary healthcare systems--in minority and underserved communities. This integration can take place at different levels: individuals (patients, healers, biomedical healthcare providers), institutions (health centers, hospitals) or society (government policy).

Background: Contemporary ethnobotany research of traditional medicine has primarily dealt with the botanical identification of plants commonly used by local communities, and the identification of health conditions treated with these plants, whereas ethnopharmacology has focused on the bioactivity of traditional remedies. On the other hand, medical anthropology seems to be the scholarship more involved with research into patients' healthcare-seeking itineraries and their interaction with traditional versus biomedical healthcare systems. The direct impact of these studies on public health of local communities can be contested.

Aim of the review: To compare and discuss the body of scholarly work that deals with different aspects of traditional medicine in underserved and minority communities, and to reflect on how gaps identified in research can be bridged to help improve healthcare in these communities.

Key findings: The literature covers a broad range of information of relevance to intercultural healthcare. This information is fragmented across different scientific and clinical disciplines. A conceptual review of these studies identifies a clear need to devote more attention to ways in which research on traditional medicine can be more effectively applied to improve local public health in biomedical resource-poor settings, or in geographic areas that have disparities in access to healthcare.

Conclusions: Scholars studying traditional medicine should prioritize a more interdisciplinary and applied perspective to their work in order to forge a more direct social impact on public health in local communities most in need of healthcare.

Keywords: Conceptual review; Cultural competence in healthcare; Ethnosciences; Medicinal plants; Public health; Traditional medicine.