THE PRACTICE AND CHALLENGES OF TRADITIONAL BONE SETTING IN THE ABAKALIKI AREA, EBONYI STATE, NIGERIA, 1970-2022

Abstract

African traditional medicine comprises various branches which include Traditional bone setting, a practice that have defied the challenge of science and modernization. While the growth of traditional medicine may fluctuate over time, the practice of bone setting seems to have maintained a steady growth and development, sometimes surpassing orthopedics. The practitioners cut across different age groups, gender and income levels and the practice which was previously manual and crude have over time, absorbed relevant aspects of orthopedics while retaining its traditional outlook. This study seeks to unravel the factors that favor the enduring relevance of traditional bone setters despite readily available orthopedic treatment in the hospital. The functionalist Theory of health featured in this paper for easier appreciation of the desperation for sound health which lends considerable traction to the bone setters. The paper relied on raw information garnered from interviews granted by the bone setters, patients and common people. Some written materials such as journals and online publications which discuss the practice of bone setting in Nigeria and Africa was utilized as well. The paper concluded that collaborations exists between traditional bone setters and orthopedists. It equally recommended inter alia, an inclusion of atraditional bone setting section in orthopedic clinics in the Abakaliki area.