PriMera Scientific Medicine and Public Health (ISSN: 2833-5627)

Research Study

Volume 7 Issue 1

Qualitative Analysis of the Perceptions of Modern Medicine among the Indigenous Pygmy People of Yahuma; in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Santhos Lobwa Bosongo*, Alpha Ngandru Kiza, Ley Bafeno Liande, Samuel Bosongo Itigaino, Didier Chuy Kalombola, Bolinda Wa Bolinda and Faustin Chenge Mukaleng

July 01, 2025

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Abstract

Background: Modern medicine, with its technological and scientific advances, occupies a central place in contemporary healthcare systems. However, its adoption and integration vary considerably according to cultural and social contexts. Among the indigenous Yahuma pygmy peoples, whose medical traditions are deeply rooted in a holistic relationship with nature and spirit, the encounter with modern medicine raises complex questions.

Objective: this qualitative study aimed to explore the perceptions and representations that these communities have of modern medicine, highlighting the cultural, social and symbolic dynamics that influence their relationship to these practices.

Methods: using a phenomenological qualitative approach, the study focuses on issues of identity, logics of trust or mistrust, and interactions between local knowledge and biomedicine. This work thus contributes to a broader reflection on the plurality of healthcare systems and the need to devise inclusive models that respect cultural diversity.

Results: Perceptions of modern medicine vary, from a strong preference for its effectiveness to criticism of its undesirable effects and inaccessibility. Attitudes towards the modernization of health care thus reveal a duality, with part of the community ready to embrace biomedicine if it is made accessible, while others insist on the importance of preserving traditional knowledge.

Conclusion: an inclusive approach that takes into account the socio-economic and cultural realities of the Yahuma Pygmies is necessary. It seems appropriate to promote complementarity by developing strategies adapted to local needs and specificities.

Keywords: Perceptions; Modern medicine; Indigenous people; Pygmy; Yahuma

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