Alternative and Complementary Health Practices among Ghanaian Immmigrants in NewYork City

Introduction: There is widespread use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) in Ghana, driven by cultural consideration and paradigm to disease causation. Whether there is concurrent use of conventional medicine and CAM among  Ghanaian immigrants in the USA is not well known.  It is important to know local cultural practices in terms of health behavior among Ghanaian immigrants in order to inform culturally competent health care for this population in the US.

Method: We  have conducted in-depth  interviews with 12  Ghanaian immigrants and 2 Ghanaian  grocery shop owners who sell herbal  products in New York city.

Results:  The preliminary findings show that majority of Ghanaian immigrants participated in the study use alternative medicine including herbal and other forms of therapy.We also examined the  impact of acculturation of Ghanaian immigrants New York  focusing particularly on attitudes towards and usage of Ghanaian traditional medicine. The study also reveal socio cultural norms towards health care seeking behavior among participants. It is reported that perceived masculinity is associated with lack of accessing care.

Conclusion:  There is the need for health care providers and other stakeholders to be aware of the influence of  indegenous health care practice and alternative medicine among Ghanaian immigrants during their acculturation process.