This study determined the perceived efficacy of various health care providers for the last illness episode patients had suffered. 104 African/Black participants (50 male and 54 female), chosen by quota sampling from the general public (urban population of Mankweng), Northern Province, were interviewed. The research design was a one-shot case study. Medical treatment (68%) was the major choice o...

According to Merriam-Webster, alternative medicine is “any of various systems of healing or treating disease (as chiropractic, homeopathy, or faith healing) not included in the traditional medical curricula of the United States and Britain”. This definition highlights how the various types of medicine are viewed differently throughout the world. For example, chiropractic medicine – a form of di...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate deaths of children from families in which faith healing was practiced in lieu of medical care and to determine if such deaths were preventable. DESIGN Cases of child fatality in faith-healing sects were reviewed. Probability of survival for each was then estimated based on expected survival rates for children with similar disorders who receive medical care. PARTICIPANT...

Background HIV remains a major public health challenge in Zambia. The roll-out of antiretroviral treatment (ART) has engendered new challenges in retention in care. Objective To conceptualise the factors affecting retention in care of ART patients at three primary healthcare facilities using the ecological framework. Method Qualitative data were collected through in-depth interviews with 45...

Some people living with HIV (PLHIV) refuse to initiate antiretroviral therapy (ART) despite availability. Between March 2010 and September 2011, using a social ecological framework, we investigated barriers to ART initiation in Lusaka, Zambia. In-depth interviews were conducted with PLHIV who were offered treatment but declined (n=37), ART staff (n=5), faith healers (n=5), herbal medicine provi...

Healing implies a view of wholeness. Working from Jesus' revelation of God on the cross as the self-giving love of Father (I), Son (Thou) and Holy Spirit (We), this article sees human wholeness as spiritual growth toward trinitarian love. Five stages of growth appear from salvation history: initial faith (trust), familial faith (conventional law morality), individuating faith (individually free...

The aim of this paper is to obtain an initial estimate of people awareness, attitudes and understanding towards epilepsy and to provide a basis for international comparisons. A cross-sectional study conducted during 1995 in Al-Ain City, Dubai and Sharjah Emirates, United Arab Emirates (UAE). We used a simple questionnaire following a two-stage sampling technique. A total of 1050 subjects aged 1...

A survey among 293 GPs in the Netherlands showed that many believe in the efficacy of common alternative procedures. High scores were especially found for manual therapy, yoga, acupuncture, hot bath therapy and homoeopathy. Other procedures, such as iridology, faith healing and many food supplements, were considered less useful. Key words—alternative medicine, efficacy, general practice, questi...

Quite surprisingly, historians know little about Hippocrates, the physician often referred to as "the father of medicine". However, we do know that he was a strong advocate of the use of medicinal plants to prevent and cure diseases. He recorded between three hundred and four hundred plant remedies in his writing and during the middle ages herbal remedies were passed down from generation to gen...