An experience of traditional medicine at the leaf house

Traditional medicine in Benin has evolved, and this poses the problem of the relationship between traditherapy and the intercultural dynamics that our societies face in the face of "modernization. The results obtained show that with the valorization, certain practices and representations related to traditional medicine in this center are out of phase with the social and cultural logics that found traditional medicine. These breaks imply a weakening of the socio-cultural basis of endogenous medicine and testify to a logic of scientific legitimization of traditional medicine. In addition, certain socio-cultural logics specific to endogenous medicine are safeguarded thanks to the tradithérapeutes' room for manoeuvre, while others are perpetuated by undergoing transformations. Important innovations are at work in the traditional medicine practiced in this center. These innovations are both technical and organizational in nature and testify to the creative imagination deployed in this hospital to adapt the remedies used to the requirements of an increasingly Westernized clientele.

Autorentext

Daleb Abdoulaye Alfa es asistente de investigación en el Laboratorio de Antropología Médica Aplicada de la Universidad de Abomey-Calavi. Ha realizado varios trabajos de investigación en antropología de la salud y es autor de varias publicaciones, sobre todo en el campo de la malaria, la enfermedad del virus del Ébola y la vacunación infantil.