Abstract

HEALTHCARE SEEKING ATTITUDE AND UTILIZATION OF TRADITIONAL MEDICINE IN INDIA- AN OVERVIEW

N. Srikanth*, Sulochana Bhat, Arjun Singh, Renu Singh

Abstract

The health care system in India is very unique as various indigenous systems like Ayurveda, Yoga and naturopathy, Siddha, Unani and different other forms of medical systems like Homoeopathy are widely accepted and practiced parallel to allopathic system of medicine. In India, most of the people belonging to different strata of society, primarily in rural areas, resort to the practices of Indian systems of medicine for improving their health. Due to its countrywide presence, easy availability, affordability and safety, Traditional systems have survived through centuries. It is not only an Indian situation but in many foreign countries increasing number of people adopt complementary or alternative medicine approaches to meet their personal health problems. There are many factors that influence health and health care seeking behavior of a person. Although many of these factors are similar across populations, exactly how they influence the help seeking behavior is often unique to a population. The review of literature and evidence demonstrate that the decision to engage with a particular medical system is influenced by a variety of socio-economic variables, sex, age, social status, type of illness, access to services and perceived quality of the service.

Keywords: Traditional Medicine, AYUSH, Ayurveda, Healthcare, Utilization.