Current Status of Traditional and Complementary Medicine Use in Qassim Province, Saudi Arabia
Abdullah M. Al-Bedah
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Naseem A. Qureshi *
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Omer Abdulaziz Al-Yahia
General Health Directorate, Ministry of Health, Al-Qassim Province, Saudi Arabia
Abdullah Al-Saigul
Research and Information Unit, Department of Public Health, General Directorate of Health, Al-Qassim Province, Saudi Arabia
Mohammed Aldoghaim
Research and Information Unit, Department of Public Health, General Directorate of Health, Al-Qassim Province, Saudi Arabia
Ahmed T. El-Olemy
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University, Egypt
Sulaiman Aleidi
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Asim A. Hussein
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Ibrahim S. Elsubai
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Tamer S. Aboushanab
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Gazzaffi I. M. Ali
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Ahmed H. Almosilhi
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Meshari S. Alqaed
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Mohammed Khalil
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Background: Traditional medicine is an ancient nonconventional method of treating a variety of diseases in diverse cultures of the Eastern world, and currently its potential value has been recognized around the world.
Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the current use of traditional and complementary medicine (T&CM) in Qassim province and to determine the users' profile and the most common T&CM therapies used in Saudi Arabia.
Methods: A cross-sectional study of primary healthcare (PHC, n=16) attendees (n=285, response rate=71.3%) using a self-designed reliable questionnaire concerning their sociodemographic variables and T&CM use.
Results: Besides revealing some sociodemographic characteristics and associations with traditional medicine, about 62% of participants used T&CM and 57.5% of participants reported T&CM as part of their indigenous inherited tradition. The main traditional practices including religious and spiritual healings, herbs, cupping (Al-Hijamah), cautery and honey and bee products were used most importantly for the treatment of diverse chronic health conditions by females, the two predictors of T&CM use. Ministry of Health (MOH) should offer T&CM in all public healthcare settings and should regulate its practice in private sector in order to safeguard patient affairs including holistic care and patient-centered medicine.
Conclusion: Traditional indigenous therapies especially culture-based are widely used by PHC patients in Qassim province. The National Survey is needed to draw a more comprehensive epidemiological trend of T&CM use in Saudi Arabia and by extension in other Gulf countries.
Keywords: Traditional and complementary therapies, primary healthcare attendees, ministry of health, Al-Qassim province, Saudi Arabia