Ancient Remedies, New Disease - Involving Traditional Healers in Increasing Access to AIDS Care and Prevention in East Africa. Unaids Case Study June 2 (Electronic book text)

In many African countries, traditional healers far outnumber modern health practitioners, and the majority of the population uses traditional medicine. There has been much scepticism about traditional healers but, as this report shows, they can play a prominent role in caring for people living with HIV/AIDS, as well as in prevention activities. This report describes three initiatives-in Kenya, the United Republic of Tanzania and Uganda-that have narrowed the gap between the traditional and biomedical health systems. The report also includes anecdotal accounts by traditional healers themselves, as well as details of training provided to the healers, and lessons learned from each of the three initiatives.