Psychological ailments and their treatment protocols: a case study of Swati traditional healers in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa

Ngobe, Anastasia; Semenya, Sebua Silas; Sodi, Tholene

doi:10.4314/ahs.v21i2.50

Cited by 17 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…According to Mashamaite (2015), traditional health care practitioners can choose to admit mentally ill patients to their homes for a short period during the treatment process, and this will help to monitor the progress and observe any changes in the patient's condition. In support, Ngobe et al (2021) indicated that traditional health care practitioners in Eswatini keep mentally ill patients in their homes for treatment until they recover. However, other traditional health care practitioners indicated that they treat mentally ill patients in their homes under the supervision of their families to ensure that they conform to treatment to reduce the severity of mental illness.…”

Section: Indigenous Mental Illness Treatment Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indigenous health care practices in the treatment of mental illness in South Africa

Moagi¹,

Mathapo-Thobakgale²,

Magoro³

2022

Working With Indigenous Knowledge: Strategies for Health Professionals

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Peer review declarationThe publisher (AOSIS) endorses the South African 'National Scholarly Book Publishers Forum Best Practice for Peer Review of Scholarly Books'. The manuscript underwent an evaluation to compare the level of originality with other published works and was subjected to rigorous two-step peer review before publication, with the identities of the reviewers not revealed to the editor(s) or author(s). The reviewers were independent of the publisher, editor(s) and author(s). The publisher shared feedback on the similarity report and the reviewers' inputs with the manuscript's editor(s) or author(s) to improve the manuscript. Where the reviewers recommended revision and improvements, editor(s) or author(s) responded adequately to such recommendations. The reviewers commented positively on the scholarly merits of the manuscript and recommended that the book be published.

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Section: Indigenous Mental Illness Treatment Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indigenous health care practices in the treatment of mental illness in South Africa

Moagi¹,

Mathapo-Thobakgale²,

Magoro³

2022

Working With Indigenous Knowledge: Strategies for Health Professionals

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Although the calling is regarded as a gift by THPs, it may manifest as a serious mental illness ( 13 , 15 ). According to traditional beliefs, the only cure for calling-related illness, which might also involve a range of physical symptoms, is to accept the calling and become a THP by successfully completing an apprenticeship to become a THP ( 13 , 15 – 17 ). This process of becoming a THP is called ukuthwasa 2 in isiZulu, the language of the Zulu people (see list of isiZulu terms).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Course of psychotic experiences and disorders among apprentice traditional health practitioners in rural South Africa: 3-year follow-up study

et al. 2022

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BackgroundCulture is inevitably linked with the experience, interpretation and course of what modern biomedicine understands to be psychotic symptoms. However, data on psychoses in low- and middle-income countries are sparse. Our previous study showed that psychotic and mood-related experiences, symptoms and disorders are common among individuals who had received the ancestral calling to become a traditional health practitioner (THP) in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Our related ethnographic study suggested that ukuthwasa (the training to become a THP) may positively moderate these calling-related symptoms. As far as we know, no research has been conducted into the course of psychiatric symptoms among apprentice THPs.ObjectiveWe studied the course of psychotic experiences, symptoms and disorders among apprentice THPs. We also assessed their level of functioning and expanded our knowledge on ukuthwasa.Materials and methodsWe performed a 3-year follow-up of a baseline sample of apprentice THPs (n = 48). Psychiatric assessments (CAPE, SCAN), assessment of functioning (WHODAS) and a semi-structured qualitative questionnaire were completed for 42 individuals.ResultsAt 3-year follow-up, psychotic experiences were associated with significantly less distress and there was a reduction in frequency of psychotic symptoms compared to baseline. The number of participants with psychotic disorders had decreased from 7 (17%) to 4 (10%). Six out of seven participants (86%) with a psychotic disorder at baseline no longer had a psychiatric diagnosis at follow-up. Although the mean level of disability among the (apprentice) THPs corresponded with the 78th percentile found in the general population, 37 participants (88%) reported no or mild disability. Forty-one participants (98%) reported that ukuthwasa had positively influenced their psychiatric symptoms.ConclusionIn rural KwaZulu-Natal, psychotic experiences, symptoms and disorders have a benign course in most individuals who are undergoing the process of becoming a THP. Ukuthwasa may be an effective, culturally sanctioned, healing intervention for some selected individuals, potentially because it reframes distressing experiences into positive and highly valued experiences, reduces stigma, and enhances social empowerment and identity construction. This implies that cultural and spiritual interventions can have a positive influence on the course of psychosis.

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“…Rural populations still rely on traditional systems for the treatment of different ailments, but safety and efficacy for some plant species are yet to be verified. Furthermore, their use by traditional healers does not hold a primary therapeutic function as the methods of preparation and dosing are different for each healer (Oziama & Okaka 2019;Ngobe, Semenya & http://www.jomped.org Open Access…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phytochemical composition and chemical profiling of extracts of Cordia grandicalyx Oberm

Chauke

Mogale

Mdee

et al. 2022

JOMPED

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Background: The search for bioactive organic products for the treatment of various diseases is a growing concern worldwide, because these bioactive natural products are associated with fewer side effects and are easily accessible.Aim: The present study analysed the phytochemical constituents and cytotoxic effects of the leaf, bark and fruit extracts of Cordia grandicalyx Oberm.Setting: Plant samples were collected from Ga-Mashishimale village in Ba-Phalaborwa Municipality, South Africa.Methods: Antioxidant activity was determined through 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging method, whilst cytotoxic assay was assessed using the 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5 diphenyl tetrazolium bromide method. Plant extracts were subjected to phytochemical profiling using both qualitative and quantitative methods. The extracts were also subjected to fractionation using column chromatography and thin-layer chromatography, and the sub-fractions with considerable yields were identified using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR).Results: The aqueous extracts of the bark and leaves had significant (p 0.001) antioxidant activity as compared to negative controls and ascorbic acid. Additionally, appreciable amounts of total phenolic and alkaloid contents were recorded on polar extracts, notably 200 mg/GAE and 140 mg/quercetin equivalents for leaf cold water and leaf hot water extracts, respectively. All extracts were not toxic to cells, whilst the positive control (H2O2) led to almost 100% demise of cells. Two compounds were isolated from the leaf acetone extracts collected from fraction 20 to 30 and fraction 101 to 120 and identified as α˗amyrin and β-amyrin by NMR spectral analysis.Conclusion: The study provided evidence supporting the screening of plants for the discovery of therapeutic compounds. The study also revealed that all the different C. grandicalyx extracts were less toxic to cells and may provide scientific backing for continued use of the plant in mixtures for the treatment of diseases.

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Psychological ailments and their treatment protocols: a case study of Swati traditional healers in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa

Cited by 17 publications

References 41 publications

Indigenous health care practices in the treatment of mental illness in South Africa

Indigenous health care practices in the treatment of mental illness in South Africa

Course of psychotic experiences and disorders among apprentice traditional health practitioners in rural South Africa: 3-year follow-up study

Phytochemical composition and chemical profiling of extracts of Cordia grandicalyx Oberm

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