Week 3 Responses

I found the Hmong article and reading to be very interesting. When we think of migrants, Americans tend to have a view of a Latino worker. We never really think of the implications of migrant health in Asian communities. The articles raise key points about the use of home herbal remedies, doctor relationship to patients, and societal norms. Firstly, at what point can we tell a cultural society that their practices are wrong and that they must use medical remedies approved by America? We can have the convincing point that medical remedies are proven to be more successful, but are we in the place to shut down all cultural heritage? Also, the reading raises an important point about doctor communication. Doctors are just as responsible in clear communication just as the patient. It’s important to note that visiting a doctor can be a very difficult and nervous experience for different people due to the lack of privacy and physical examination. We put an immense amount of faith into doctors where as in other cultures, that trust takes much longer to build. Also, doctors have been known to not clearly articulate the problem to the patient but rather hastily subscribe solutions and move on. It requires patience and mutual understanding of both parties. We must work to have an agreement as seen in the NYT article. We need more cultural immersion programs integrated in medicine to make transitions and we need more cultural training for doctors.