Hmong Americans, who originally came from Laos, Southeast Asia have continued to rely on their traditional practices of health and healing in the US despite the advance in medicine and technologies (Cha, 2003). Traditionally, Hmong do not believe in Western medicine, and they have continued to rely on their traditional medicines as practiced in Southeast Asia. To restore health, Hmong use Chinese medicine and express their beliefs in the Christian faith. However, they have strong beliefs in spirit. In addition, Hmong believe that their souls are controlled by the spirit. For Hmong, there is a temporary loss of soul, and it is associated with several ill healths. Traumatic events, accidents, or angered spirits may take the soul. In this case, a shaman who is a chief healer and leader must intervene to contact the spirit directly because of his divine power (Yee, n.d). The belief in Sudden Unexpected Nocturnal Death Syndrome is common among Hmong Americans, particularly among the healthy population (Gerdner, 2008). They believe that an evil spirit attacks during a nightmare and squeezes the life out of its frightened victims. Hmong Americans prefer home remedies relative to health resources and neighborhood health centers available around them (Yee, n.d). Relative to Caucasians, Hmong rarely use modern healthcare facilities. Instead, traditional healers and practices play significant roles in their healing.
For pregnant women, Hmong have a unique belief system that doctors should not examine pregnant women. The nature of the examination could be intimate, and the traditional belief system does not support such practices during pregnancy. As such, Hmong prefer traditional birth attendants. Embarrassment and shyness among women are major factors that hinder visiting clinics. They considered doctors as strangers who should not physically touch them.
The case of Hmong Americans is interesting because it presents significant challenges to the modern American healthcare system. Specifically, the issue of cultural awareness and competency is now a critical area of focus for healthcare providers in the US. It presents an opportunity for nurses to understand Hmong Americans who may not visit healthcare facilities because of their cultural practices, deep belief systems, and even fear and embarrassment. Nurses who understand the role of cultures in influencing access to modern healthcare can use this information to adopt more cultural competence strategies. Medical decision-making is important for nurses to understand because it varies from modern practices among Hmong Americans. Therefore, it is imperative to offer medical orientation, health education, and promotion about the modern healthcare system to Hmong Americans using culturally sensitive content. This approach perhaps may increase the utilization of Western medicine and care services. Nurses can rely on interpreters and use more acculturated members of Hmong Americans to promote the use of modern medicine and care facilities, particularly among the elderly. In addition, medical decision-making should involve family members. More acculturated family members will assist the elderly to understand the importance of modern medicine and their conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease (Gerdner, 2008). Thus, family members assist to improve accessibility to healthcare among Hmong Americans.
For nurses, the question that needs a clear response is whether Hmong Americans should continue with their traditional practices and medicine instead of adopting the modern healthcare system in their communities. It is therefore important for nurses to understand Hmong concepts of Western medicine, healthcare systems, beliefs about illnesses, healing, and death. In addition, culturally sensitive approaches must also account for their experiences with traditional medicine (Cha, 2003). In so doing, nurses would understand critical elements that either hinder or enhance healthcare provision and usage among Hmong Americans.
References
Cha, D. (2003). Hmong American Concepts of Health, Healing, and Conventional Medicine. New York: Routledge.
Gerdner, L. A. (2008). Translating Research Findings Into a Hmong American Children’s Book to Promote Understanding of Persons with Alzheimer’s Disease. Hmong Studies Journal, 9, 1-21.
Yee, B. W. (n.d). Health and Health Care of Southeast Asian American Elders: Vietnamese, Cambodian, Hmong and Laotian Elders. Web.