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306795
Cultivation, preparation and use of local medicinal plants in primary healthcare, the experience of Bogota, Colombia
Monday, November 17, 2014
Natalia Aldana, MD
,
Hospital Nazareth I Nivel ESE, Bogota, Colombia
Andrea Moya, MS (Environmental Studies)
,
Hospital Nazareth I Nivel ESE, Bogota, Colombia
Leonardo Garzón, DMD, MA (Administration), Health Services Management and Quality Management Specialist
,
Hospital Nazareth I Nivel ESE, Bogota, Colombia
Eliana Ivont Hurtado-Sepulveda, RN, Health Services Management Specialist, Auditor of Integrated Management Systems
,
Hospital Nazareth I Nivel ESE, Bogota, Colombia
Guillermo Elias Alvarez Henao, MD
,
Salud Pública, Secretaría Distrital de Salud de Bogotá, Bogota, DC, Colombia
In December 2012, the Bogota Health Department funded a pilot initiative to train public health teams (physicians, nurses, nurse-aids and environmental professionals) on the cultivation, preparation and use of local medicinal plants. The project aimed at bridging a disconnect that exists between common community use of medicinal plants and classic public health interventions. The project was designed to build the capacity of the public health teams and broaden their tool kit and skills when addressing community health needs. These teams were trained specifically on the use of plants and remedies approved for therapeutic use in Colombia. The project not only trained teams on technical and therapeutic aspects of medicinal plants and provided strategies for the participatory engagement with communities. The program trained 66 public health teams, 340 professionals in total, working on all administrative divisions within the city. The training, held at the city´s Botanical Garden, included theoretical and practical approaches to agricultural management of medicinal plants, botanics, photochemistry, phytotherapy in primary health care, community engagement skills, and the preparation of home-based remedies. The project developed complementary online training materials, an interactive platform, and also published a basic illustrated booklet to facilitate community work. As a result of the training, professionals engaged with their communities in the implementation and promotion of activities aimed to foster the use of medicinal plants to manage common symptoms and diseases in a safe, participatory and culturally-relevant manner. To our knowledge, this pilot project was the first in Colombia to integrate local medicinal plants into the public health programs of the healthcare system
Learning Areas:
Diversity and culture
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Other professions or practice related to public health
Learning Objectives:
Describe the design, development, and implementation of a capacity building project in the cultivation, preparation and use of local medicinal plants for public health teams (physicians, nurses, nurse aids and environmental professionals) in Bogota, Colombia
Keyword(s): Alternative and Complementary Health, Community-Based Health
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a physician with post-graduate training in complementary and alternative medicine and have experience in public health programs design and implementation. I worked on a pilot project to integrate complementary and alternative medicine in the healthcare system in Colombia. I am currently enroled in a DrPH program at Boston University School of Public Health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines,
and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed
in my presentation.
