Primary Health Care and Traditional Medicine: A Review of Views and Obstacles

Abstract

Traditional, complementary, and alternative medicine (TCAM) has recently attracted more attention for its potential benefits to public health in both industrialized and developing nations. Among traditional medicine's many advantages are its adaptability, diversity, accessibility, widespread and ongoing acceptance in developing nations and rising popularity in developed nations, relative cheap cost, low levels of technological input, relative lack of side effects, and expanding economic significance (WHO 2002). To reach the goal of better access to healthcare facilities, it is essential to include traditional medicine into public health care in this setting. Nevertheless, there seems to be a discrepancy between the public's individual decisions about the integration of various medical systems and the creation and execution of TCAM policies. Safety, effectiveness, quality, and rational use of traditional medicine are among the key policy problems identified by the World Health Organization (WHO)
. In this context, the article provides a synopsis of TCAM, including its worldwide reach, the many legislative initiatives aimed at promoting it, its function in primary health care, and the most pressing modern obstacles to its incorporation into public health.