Okinawan Spiritual and Cultural Beliefs: Deriving Implications for Mental Health Nursing Care

I examine traditional Okinawan cultural beliefs regarding mental health care, and how these differ from Western approaches used in Okinawa, often hindering treatment outcomes. Identifying Okinawan mental health beliefs and their differences and commonalities with Western health care practices can begin a dialogue leading to an integrated approach that more fully considers the limitations and benefits inherent in both systems. Such examinations can be a starting point towards adapting the Western approach to the Okinawan environment, rather than fitting the Okinawan population into a Western paradigm of treatment, and culturally empower the patient to participate more actively in their mental health care process. Thus, this paper seeks to begin identification of the cultural perspectives that can lead to the development of a uniquely Okinawan mental health care system that is optimized to meet the cultural and social needs of the patient, with special attention to the role of nurses.