Graduate student in public health at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.
Clinical associate professor at the University of Arizona College of Nursing in Tucson.
AMA J Ethics. 2020 Oct 1;22(10):E837-844. doi: 10.1001/amajethics.2020.837.
American Indian (AI) and Indigenous peoples utilize traditional medicine/healing (TM/H) for health and well-being. Allopathic health care practitioners (HCPs) receive minimal training and education on TM/H and its application and integration into health care settings. Lack of knowledge and practice guidelines on how to navigate these 2 health care perspectives (allopathic and traditional) creates uncertainties in the treatment of AI and Indigenous peoples. Such conflicts can undermine patient autonomy and result in culturally incongruent practice. This article presents a case study showcasing suggestions for how HCPs can direct clinical decision making when working with AI/Indigenous patients who utilize TM/H. The article argues that health professions education institutions and HCPs must dedicate effort to expanding awareness of and education about TM/H to enhance the delivery of evidence-based and integrated clinical treatment for AI/Indigenous patients.
美洲印第安人（AI）和原住民利用传统医学/治疗（TM/H）来保持健康。主流医疗保健从业者（HCP）在 TM/H 及其应用和整合到医疗保健环境方面接受的培训和教育很少。由于缺乏关于如何驾驭这两种医疗保健观点（主流和传统）的知识和实践指南，因此在 AI 和原住民的治疗中存在不确定性。这种冲突可能会损害患者的自主权，并导致文化上不一致的实践。本文通过案例研究展示了 HCP 如何在与使用 TM/H 的 AI/原住民患者合作时指导临床决策。文章认为，卫生专业教育机构和 HCP 必须努力提高对 TM/H 的认识和教育，以加强为 AI/原住民患者提供循证和综合临床治疗。
