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British Indo-Asians with diabetes mellitus : their adherence and use of medicinal plants
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Garnett, Khanungnit Kym (2004) British Indo-Asians with diabetes mellitus : their adherence and use of medicinal plants. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.
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WRAP_THESIS_Garnett_2004.pdf - Submitted Version - Requires a PDF viewer. Download (33Mb) |
Official URL: http://webcat.warwick.ac.uk/record=b1757564~S1
Abstract
This thesis describes investigations of the usage of unconventional therapeutic
methods to treat diabetes mellitus, with particular reference to Asian patients. Findings
suggest that usage of unconventional therapeutic methods may persist in diabetic
patients regardless of their language, religious belief, ethnic and cultural background or
psychological states and adherence.
The thesis is presented in two parts. Study 1, a preliminary study, was conducted in
Thailand. Groups of adults with diabetes mellitus, aged 17 - 70+ years, were studied to
assess the extent to which unconventional therapeutic methods were used, and to
examine the possibility that such usage is associated with their psychological states and
unsatisfactorily feelings toward orthodox medicine. Data collection was achieved
through a combination of well-established and well-evaluated questionnaires and a
structured interview. A scale to assess attitudes to diabetes was found to be reliable in
this sample, but scales to measure diabetes knowledge and treatment satisfaction were
not.
Study 2 was a study of British Indo-Asians in Foleshill, Coventry, England. The
extent to which medicinal plants were used was explored and compared between two
different cultural and religious backgrounds of adults with diabetes: (1) born in an Asian
country and (2) born in England. The majority of participants were old with low
educational background and income. A number of modifications were made to the
structured interview used in study 1 to make it more appropriate for this sample.
The two studies suggest that usage of medicinal plants is common among diabetics
in Thailand and among British Indo-Asian diabetics born in an Asian country. Only a
minority of users of medicinal plants in both countries were willing to discuss their
usage of medicinal plants with their physicians. This could be because users believed that their physicians might not approve the usage of non-orthodox treatment. In
Thailand, usage of medicinal plants was significantly associated with one factor - a lack
of basic diabetes knowledge. In the study in England, a typical user was characterised as
an Asian female born in an Asian country, who had a low income, used betel-nut, had a
preferencef or a doctor's ethnicity, and had low treatment satisfaction and adherence
scores.
Item Type: | Thesis (PhD) | ||||
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Subjects: | R Medicine > RC Internal medicine R Medicine > RM Therapeutics. Pharmacology |
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Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Diabetes -- Treatment -- Thailand, Diabetes -- Treatment -- England -- Coventry, Alternative medicine -- Thailand, Alternative medicine -- England -- Coventry, Medicinal plants, Asians -- England -- Coventry -- Health and hygiene | ||||
Official Date: | April 2004 | ||||
Dates: |
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Institution: | University of Warwick | ||||
Theses Department: | Warwick Medical School | ||||
Thesis Type: | PhD | ||||
Publication Status: | Unpublished | ||||
Supervisor(s)/Advisor: | O'Hare, Paul ; Collis, Glyn | ||||
Extent: | 2 v. (xx, 417 p.) | ||||
Language: | eng |
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