Objective: Due to the large number of Black South Africans known to consult
with traditional healers and the influential role they play in the developing
world, this study investigated the approaches of a group of 15 traditional healers
toward the treatment of cleft lip and palate.
Design: An exploratory-descriptive, qualitative research design was employed,
which involved the use of standardized, semistructured interviews,
conducted with the assistance of an interpreter who was fluent in several African
languages.
Setting: Interviews were conducted outdoors in places in which traditional
healers usually consult with their patients. These areas were in the fields close
to the traditional healers’ homes or under a highway bridge in the Johannesburg
inner city.
Participants: Individual interviews were conducted with 15 African traditional
healers who had been practicing in their callings for at least 1 year.
Results: Traditional healers interviewed had treated one to six persons with
a cleft lip, cleft palate, or both. Most informants believed that clefts were
caused by the ancestors, spirits, and witchcraft. A variety of plant and animal
products were used to treat these conditions and were augmented by spiritual
resources from the ancestors. All except one healer had undergone formal
training, although they had received no specific training relative to cleft lip and
palate. Most participants reported referring patients to Western health care
practitioners who were referred to as modern doctors but did not receive reciprocal
referrals from these professionals. Patients generally consulted with
traditional healers because this approach was part of their culture.
Conclusions: These findings have important implications for health care professionals
as well as traditional healers in terms of cross-cultural consultation,
collaboration, and information sharing with regard to cleft lip and palate; the
potential use of traditional healers in primary health care and education; and
further research.