The Applied Approach
In any anthropology related studies anthropologists used techniques like interview and participant observation to help them learn about a population or an individual person. This helps them understand why a society feels the way they do about a certain medical procedure or medication which allows for public health officials to deliver global health education and medication. Looking at cultural clues helps doctors in hospitals deliver better clinical care by integrating western and traditional medicine just like they did in the article Welcoming Shamans. Anthropologists also work with the government or large companies like advertising, biotechnology, or pharmaceuticals. As you can see the applied approach takes into account global health, clinical studies, government, and industry and brings it all together to form a culture which anthropologists will study.
Globalization can be defined as the process of international integration arising from the interchange of world views, products, ideas, and other aspects of culture. I think that the new generations and younger people are much more open to new ideas and culture since it is promoted in schools and taught to be essential to our growing world. I personally feel that diversity and learning about other cultures and practices is essential to life because I want to be able to relate to other people that I meet. America is sort of a melting pot for many types of people so it is important to know and understand that as a medical professional you will encounter people who look, act, speak, and behave different than you do. Building a trust with your patient is the most important part about being a physician because that trust will allow you to treat them effectively. Being respectful of someones culture will help build that trust an allow you to better treat that person.
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The picture to the above is a globe representing different cultures around it. I thought that this really tied together the idea of globalization and anthropology since we study culture and the various aspects of culture.
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A medical anthropologist is different than a doctor because doctors see us as all being human first and that we have a certain set of working parts and those parts are the same from one person to the next. On the other hand an anthropologist will see that yes even though mechanically we are all the same we have a different background and a different set of experiences than the next person. These experiences could be the cause of my illness or could have an impact on my health in a different way than another person. For example one huge thing that impacts health is socioeconomic status. This is a factor that plays a role in where you grow up, the foods you eat, and the prior healthcare you had access to. Socioeconomic status might be something that an anthropologist notices first versus a physician.
Although this deals with our rival school (haha) I chose to look at the University of Michigan Lupus Program since it is something available here in Michigan. The team there consists of rheumatologists, nephrologists, pulmonologists, dermatologists, hematologists and high risk obstetricians and gynecologists since lupus is such a debilitating disease that affects many parts of the body. I think that they could use anthropological studies to look into each patients background and see what environmental or biological factors they have compared to someone else. This is important because lupus is affected by so many things and analyzing this could help researchers get closer to finding a cure.
I chose this picture because it is dealing with the study of anthropology and then you get to the last human and it is a modern day representation of what the culture of America has done to the population. It is kind of comical but it is also very true that our diet and food based culture has changed the way us humans looks over the years. |
Bibliography:
"Case Study HL Only." ContiITGS-2013. Accessed August 14, 2014. http://contiitgs-2013.wikispaces.com/Globalization and Cultural diversity.
"Globalization." Wikipedia. December 8, 2014. Accessed August 14, 2014.
Karim, Taz. "Week 1: Lecture 1." ANP 204 Introduction to Medical Anthropology Summer 2014 Week 1 Lecture 1 Comments. Accessed August 14, 2014.