I decided to focus my interest on the medicinal and healing side of the Jivaroan people, and the group that I found the most information on was the Achuar people. They are one of the subgroups of the Jivaroan people, who are a community of some 18,500 individuals along either side of the border between Ecuador and Peru. Using plants as a form of medication is “an integral part of the subsistence strategies of indigenous peoples” and it has been for generations (Dufour and Warren 1994). Since they live in an uninhabited and remote territory in the Amazon rainforest, the Achuar people have been able to defend their land quite well, and unlike other indigenous groups that were easily assessable, were able to a certain degree, keep their traditional
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This is a way that doesn’t bring Western forms of medication into the villages and communities of the Achuar people, but people wishing to seek this kind of health care are still able to should they chose to do so. As of 2012 a large main health post was set up in Wasakentsa, the Salesian mission, and five other smaller health posts were set up in smaller communities around the Achuar territory (Giovannini 2015). These centers worked as non-profits, and any indigenous people who wish to come and receive medical attention could do so at no cost to them. In several other communities that were far away from these health centers. Achuar health workers were trained by outside sources (a local GNO) on primary health care, so the people in their communities didn’t have to make a long trek to seek medical attention (Giovannini 2015). It was stressed at these health centers that medical training was all voluntary, and only the communities that sought out more Western forms of health care were included in this …show more content…
In the 1970’s, the leading cause of sickness and death in the Achuar culture was believed to be witchcraft, and their main source of health care was to seek out the help of a shaman or to use medicinal plants (Giovannini 2015). For the most part, today Achuar communities have the choice of whether they want to become more accustom with Western forms of health care (such as health clinics and pharmaceuticals), or they want to keep to themselves and continue practicing their traditional forms of medicine. Organizations such as the RHP and the Ecuadorian Ministry of Health have found ways to assist these communities: by building health centers that Achuar people can travel to if they chose to seek Western medical practices, and doctors that travel to indigenous villages are trained in both Western and traditional forms of health care. This gives Achuar people a choice of whether or not they wish to implement forms of Western health into their lives, as these organizations and programs offer health on a voluntary basis. Even the RHP which travels from village to village only visits the villages that have requested their assistance, and they communicate with the village leader to ensure that they are welcome (Webster 2004). This clearly shows that due to the Achuar people making contact with outsiders, so
This is a way that doesn’t bring Western forms of medication into the villages and communities of the Achuar people, but people wishing to seek this kind of health care are still able to should they chose to do so. As of 2012 a large main health post was set up in Wasakentsa, the Salesian mission, and five other smaller health posts were set up in smaller communities around the Achuar territory (Giovannini 2015). These centers worked as non-profits, and any indigenous people who wish to come and receive medical attention could do so at no cost to them. In several other communities that were far away from these health centers. Achuar health workers were trained by outside sources (a local GNO) on primary health care, so the people in their communities didn’t have to make a long trek to seek medical attention (Giovannini 2015). It was stressed at these health centers that medical training was all voluntary, and only the communities that sought out more Western forms of health care were included in this …show more content…
In the 1970’s, the leading cause of sickness and death in the Achuar culture was believed to be witchcraft, and their main source of health care was to seek out the help of a shaman or to use medicinal plants (Giovannini 2015). For the most part, today Achuar communities have the choice of whether they want to become more accustom with Western forms of health care (such as health clinics and pharmaceuticals), or they want to keep to themselves and continue practicing their traditional forms of medicine. Organizations such as the RHP and the Ecuadorian Ministry of Health have found ways to assist these communities: by building health centers that Achuar people can travel to if they chose to seek Western medical practices, and doctors that travel to indigenous villages are trained in both Western and traditional forms of health care. This gives Achuar people a choice of whether or not they wish to implement forms of Western health into their lives, as these organizations and programs offer health on a voluntary basis. Even the RHP which travels from village to village only visits the villages that have requested their assistance, and they communicate with the village leader to ensure that they are welcome (Webster 2004). This clearly shows that due to the Achuar people making contact with outsiders, so