In Search of Healing Between Two Worlds: The Use of Traditional and Modern Health Services by Older Women in Rural Bangladesh

Abstract

The objective of this study is to gain a deeper understanding of the use of traditional and modern medicine among older adult women living in rural Bangladesh. Factors are identified that guide the women's decisions about who to seek help from when they are ill. The findings provide evidence that, in spite of the availability of modern health care, traditional healers— faith-based and herbalists—are widely utilized. Reasons given for their choice of health care providers fall into two categories: belief in the effectiveness of the intervention and service delivery considerations. These data suggest that use of traditional healers persists among women in rural areas of Bangladesh and that health policy should be developed with an acknowledgment of these health practices.

Keywords:

• health care utilization
• traditional health care
• older women
• spirituality
• Bangladesh