Conventional and Complementary Therapy Use Among Mexican Farmworkers in North Carolina: Applying the I-CAM-Q

Details

• Personal Author:
  Arcury TA ; Chen H ; Furgurson KF ; Laurienti PJ ; Miles K ; O'Hara HM
• Description:
  Objectives: This analysis documents the use of conventional health care providers, traditional healers, and complementary therapies by Mexican farmworkers; identifies the purposes and perceived helpfulness of these modalities; and delineates variation in the use of traditional healers and complementary therapies. Methods: Two-hundred Mexican farmworkers in North Carolina completed interviews May-September, 2017. The International Complementary and Alternative Medicine Questionnaire (I-CAM-Q) elicited use of conventional health care providers, traditional healers, and complementary therapies in the previous 12 months. Results: Most of the farmworkers had been treated by a conventional provider (63.0%). One-in-five had been treated by any traditional healer; 19.5% had been treated by a sobador, 4.5% by a curandero, 2.0% by an herbalist, and 2.0% by a spiritual healer. Conventional providers (69.8%) and sobadores (84.6%) most often treated acute conditions; 62.5% had used an herb, 46.0% a vitamin, 57.0% an over-the-counter medicine, and 13.5% a home remedy. Participants used various self-care practices, including music (36.5%), sleep (18.0%), prayer for health (15.0%), and social media (14.0%). Education was inversely associated with the use of a traditional healer and herbs; treatment by a conventional health care provider was positively associated with using a traditional healer and vitamins. Conclusions: Mexican farmworkers use conventional health care providers as well as traditional healers and complementary therapies. Research on how use of complementary therapies and a system of medical pluralism affects farmworker health is needed. Health care providers need to recognize complementary therapy use and provide patient education about ineffective or harmful therapies. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Education Emigration And Immigration Farmers Occupational Health Race Factors Safety Surveys And Questionnaires
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Complementary And Alternative Medicine Farm Workers Health Care Health Disparities Immigrant Workers Medical Pluralism Migrant And Seasonal Farmworkers Migrant Workers Questionnaires Racial Factors Seasonal Workers Statistical Analysis

  More +
• ISSN:
  1059-924X
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  North Carolina ; OSHA Region 4 ; Tennessee
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  257-267
• Volume:
  24
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20055031
• Citation:
  J Agromedicine 2019 Jul; 24(3):257-267
• Contact Point Address:
  Thomas A. Arcury, Department of Family and Community Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC 27157
• Email:
  tarcury@wakehealth.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2019
• Performing Organization:
  Meharry Medical College, Nashville, Tennessee
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20080701
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Agromedicine
• End Date:
  20270630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0d635f4f5b0774f796425d71834049d5bd5abf63fec0727b5710f889e2ba038992835e6feb00bed3dac035371f1385a2ef35ebaec6e763ef7d977096af03ab87
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/217427/cdc_217427_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.12 MB ]