The final approach to medial anthropology is the applied approach this is the icing on the cake, it brings togethers all the approaches discussed throughout this site. Anthropologists can then use the applied approach to come up with a treatment that is best suited for a particular individual or better develop a health system that works best for a specific area. Once a treatment plan or solution to a health care issue is designed using this applied approach globalization then spreads these advantages all over the world.
Globalization as described on wikipedia.org is "the process of international integration arising from the interchange of world views, products, and other aspects of culture." Globalization has a huge impact on medical anthropology. Once an efficient healthcare solution has been created globalization then helps countries all over the world take advantage of the benefits. This was seen in the lectures of week 6 in Somalia, globalization was huge factor in how the country overcame the Famine.
Globalization of GAD has helped treat anxiety all over the world. With the development of medications and psychological therapy people all over the world can find peace from GAD. There are not many countries that don't have access to the medications and therapy for GAD. An organization that deal with helping people afflicted with Generalized is the National Institute of Mental Health also known as the NIMH. Their goal is to transform the understanding and treatment of an array of mental illnesses including GAD through clinical research, paving the way for prevention, recovery and hopefully a cure (NIMH). They envision a world where mental illnesses are prevented and cured. The NIMH offers many outreach programs which provide interactions with advocates for individuals living with mental illnesses.
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Anthropology has offered so much to many different types of illnesses. By using the medical anthropological approaches it makes it easy for one to better understand Generalized Anxiety disorder. Medical anthropology introduces new ways to think about a disorder and its causes. Instead of just thinking about the biological factors like many are accustomed to, it teaches people to consider an illness from many different angles considering new factors such as the environment, the experience of the patient, their culture, and so much more.
Medical anthropologists have a ton to offer the health care community. By studying an illness using the 5 different approaches they can offer a lot of insight to medical professionals. In medical school doctors aren't as focused on the cultural aspect of health and healing which actually plays a huge role in the treatment and cure of an illness. An example from lecture is the woman who wanted to help the community with the rising E. Coli issue. She spent so much time coming up with a solution but she never considered the cultural issues. If she had the insight and help of a medical anthropologist before trying to find a solution together they could have came up with a treatment plan that worked best for the community. If more medical professionals and anthropologists came together to work towards a solution it would help eliminate failed healthcare solutions due to cultural differences. |
Bibliography...
"About us." NIMH. Accesses August 9, 2013. http://www.nimh.nih.gov/about/index.shtml
"Globalization." Wikipedia.org Access 2009. Accesses August 9, 2013. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Globalization
"Globalization." Wikipedia.org Access 2009. Accesses August 9, 2013. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Globalization