Public knowledge about traditional and complementary medicine

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate public knowledge about traditional and complementary medicine.

Methods: In a physical medicine and rehabilitation hospital, questionnaires were administered to 534 volunteers. The questionnaires comprised of questions regarding demographic data such as age, gender and educational level and 16 additional questions about traditional and complementary medicine defitions. These definitions were directly adopted from Ministry of Health Department of Traditional and Complementery Medical Practices. The results were recorded and statistical analysis were carried out.

Results: The volunteers were 44.6% male and 55.4% female). Acupuncture definition was known to 57.7% volunteers; this rate was 26.6% in phytotherapy, 32.2% in apitherapy, 43.4% in hypnosis, 15.2% in hirudotherapy, 28.7% in homeopathy, 11.9% in chiropractic, 32.2% in cupping therapy, 40.4% in wet cupping therapy, 29% in maggot therapy, 27.3% in mesotherapy, 18% in prolotherapy, 22.1% in osteopathy, 38.8% in ozone therapy, 40.6% in reflexology, 55.2% in music therapy. Women’s correct answers regarding hypnosis, reflexology and music therapy were found to be statistically significantly higher than men. Acupuncture and osteopathy definitions are better known to 18-30 years old volunteers than volunteers that are older than 65 years of age. Apitherapy, homeopathy, cupping, wet cupping, maggot therapy, mesotherapy, prolotherapy, ozon therapy, reflexology were less known by the older population; as the age increased the correct answers for these therapies decreased. In addition, correct answer ratio increased with the educational level, in acupuncture, apitherapy, phytotherapy, hypnosis, chariopractic, cupping, wet cupping, mesotherapy, ozone therapy and reflexology.

Conclusions: The traditional and complementary therapies need to be explained to the public. Women are more intersted in some therapies than men. Public knowledge about the definition of most traditional and complementary therapies increases with educational level. People with different demographic properties have different levels of awareness regarding traditional and complementary therapies. For example while elder people require more basic training about these methods in general, young and highly educated women who already have some awareness about these methods can go through more elaborate training programs which are designed to guide them to benefit more from these therapies. 

Keywords

• health literacy,acupuncture,cupping therapy,complementary health approaches,osteopathy

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