The picture above is showing a few tools used in Chinese medicine. They may be used in a healing ceremony or for other rituals that are practiced within the culture.
http://www.drakeacupuncture.com/images/traditional_chinese_medicine6af0179265981fad9595.jpg
http://www.drakeacupuncture.com/images/traditional_chinese_medicine6af0179265981fad9595.jpg
Below you will find the differences between applied and critical medical anthropology and there relevance to "the resolution of health and healthcare problems"
Applied Anthropology
An applied medical anthropologist is that of a cultural broker or an intermediary if you will. They mediate between biomedical practitioners and groups whose cultural assumptions might be at odds with those of underlying scientific medicine (Joralemon, 2010). These types of anthropologist pursue more effective health interventions through organizations like WHO- World Health Organization and general ethnically diverse American hospitals (Joralemon, 2010). Applied anthropology is dependent on the direct/ indirect funding of the government. In the late 1980's, when president Ronald Reagan took office there was a decrease in the governments employment for applied anthropologists (Joralemon, 2010). Non- profit organizations were established. Some of the health projects were now being funded by states, cities, or community based health organizations (Joralemon, 2010).
An example of applied anthropology in everyday life was the educational project in Indonesia in the 1970's. There was an emphasis put on the nutrition of children under the age of 5. Through first hand observation these anthropologist revealed that if a child was being breastfed, they would only breast from one side not both, this led to the mothers feeding the infants contaminated liquids or solid food. The anthropologist explained that each time the mothers feed their children they should use both the right and left breast, making sure the baby is completely satisfied (Joralemon, 2010). As a result after a year and a half the mothers who received the tips on feeding had healthier children then those that did not. |
Critical Anthropology
Critical medical anthropologists ask how the distribution of wealth, power and the division of labor affect disease patterns and health care access (Joralemon, 2010). This creates the need for anthropologists to pay more attention to the fundamental role that socioeconomic arrangements have on human health (Joralemon, 2010). Part of studying and assessing an individuals or group's economic status is also studying politics. A political analysis would remind us that humans do not live where conditions are solely shaped by the circumstances in which they are living (Joralemon, 2010). An example of this is the Cholera epidemic in Peru. Critical anthropologist found that the contaminated water and food supplies were an outcome of human behavior prompted by political interest, therefore making this a product of social, not natural circumstances. There are 2 ways in which critical anthropologist's could address the socioeconomic issue. First, they could focus on the range of health risks to which a specific human community is involved, in turn facilitating analysis of disease patterns that accompany certain socioeconomic and political systems. Second they could assess the array of health promoting resources that are available to a specific community such as family/ social support, workplace safety, health infrastructure, adequate nutrition and most importantly culturally appropriate treatment and prevention (Joralemon, 2010)
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- The overall difference between these two fields is that applied anthropology actually changes the way the people live there daily lives. They use different techniques to help the people adapt to the way life should be even though they are living in an underdeveloped area.They give nutritional and sanitation tips along with better ways to utilize some resources they have, in hope to enhance their individual lives or group. Critical anthropology sees the economical aspect, therefore it is not the lack of knowledge of the people that is causing the diseases, its the government's ideas being put in place. If they can change the infrastructure of the community and increase health care then the people will adapt and be healthier.