Perception and preferences for indigenous or western health practices

Pages: 973-976
Anwaar Mohyuddin and Zainab Suleman (Department of Anthropology, Quaid i Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan)

This particular research aimed to explore the perception and preferences of people regarding indigenous and western health practices. The objectives of the research are to know what health model is preferred by people and what the reasons of preferring certain health model are. Another objective was to know about the link of education and employment with a selection of health model. The research was conducted in village Tiyal, District Haripur. 80 respondents were selected; age, gender, education and employment were inclusive factors. Structured interviews were conducted with the help of a questionnaire. The results of the study indicate that the majority of the people intends to prefer western models of health because of its reliability and quick recovery. It was observed that education and employment does play a role in selecting health models, but even uneducated and poor people also opt for western medicine from a quack even if they cannot afford a general physician. In the light of this study it is recommended that the Government should focus on managing health resources for the people living in rural areas.