Factors Influencing the Emergence of Self‑Reliance in Primary Health Care Using Traditional Medicine: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Self‑reliance is the responsible behavior and the ability of an individual to take care of one’s own health using local resources. A substantial proportion of the population use traditional medicine (TM) for primary health care (PHC) in low‑ and middle‑income countries (LMIC). The underlying philosophy of the TM approach is self‑reliance due to its emphasis on culture, traditions, customs, and local resources. Given the complexity and ambiguity of how self‑reliance emerges, there is a need to have clarity in its understanding and the practice in relation to TM. Hence, we conducted this review to synthesize the factors determining the emergence of self‑reliance in PHC using TM in resource‑poor settings with a specific focus on LMICs. We searched PubMed, Google scholar, and the Social Science Research Network databases, and conducted reference tracking of selected articles.