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[October 31, 2003] -
During the 1990's nearly 90 thousand immigrants and refugees moved to a new home in Nebraska. That's more than it takes to fill Memorial Stadium, often called Nebraska's third largest city. The new residents often bring with them unfamiliar medical treatments that can be misunderstood by American culture. PBS' Frontline will examine the increasing popularity of alternative medicine on 'The Alternative Fix' this Thursday at 9 PM central time. Statewide's Perry Stoner has this report on Nebraska's new residents and their approach to health care. Some treatments are born of necessity and others come from thousands of years of use.
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Alternative Medicine:
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Transcript of "Alternative Medicine"
[Xay Le] "Its to warm up the muscle, relax the muscle."
[Perry Stoner reporting] USING HEAT TO TREAT AILMENTS IS A COMMON APPROACH.
[Elizabeth Nguyen] "If you are not professional you may hurt the people, you may damage the skin."
[Stoner] XAY LE, APPLIES HEAT BY WARMING A GLASS CUP AND PLACING IT ON AN ILL PERSONS BACK. CUPPING IS A TRADITIONAL TREATMENT SHE PROVIDES FOR FELLOW VIETNAMESE.
[Xay Le/Lincoln] My family, my friends, and neighbors, they ask me and I come and help.
[Stoner] RUBBING A COIN ALONG THE RIBS IS ANOTHER TREATMENT FOR COLDS AND FLU. COINING AND CUPPING ARE EXAMPLES OF MEDICAL TREATMENT FROM ANOTHER CULTURE THAT AMERICANS MAY NOT UNDERSTAND. THEY CAN LEAVE MARKS THAT HAVE BEEN MISTAKEN AS SIGNS OF ABUSE.
[ELIZABETH NGUYEN/LINCOLN] Its something new to American people, if you want to know a culture, you have to live with that culture for some time and that culture and some other things to, this is part of our culture, its not hurtful it is helpful.
[Stoner] STATE OFFICIALS SAY ITS IMPORTANT TO BE AWARE OF PRACTICES NEWCOMERS BRING WITH THEM.
[Dr. Richard Raymond/State Chief Medical Officer] Their idea of health and their idea of health care and their idea of illness sometimes are quite different than what traditional American medicine looks at as health and treatment. And we have to be respective of their--of their culture; we have to be respective of their desires.
The state would get concerned if this were underage child that uh was not an adult and could not make those decisions for him or herself.
"but ancient ways are slow to die." "their land differs from our own, their experience is different than ours."
[Stoner] WITHOUT THE ADVANTAGES OF WESTERN SOCIETY, MEDICAL TREATMENT IN MANY CULTURES WERE BORN OF NECESSITY.
[Elizabeth Nguyen] Vietnam is very poor country and disadvantaged country and we don't have advanced technology in medical area and sometime we use this kind of alternative medical treatment for common cold or flu or muscle ache etc.
[Stoner] DOCTOR BICH CHAU (BIK CHOW) KNOWS ALL ABOUT TRADITIONAL VIETNAMESE PRACTICES LIKE COINING AND CUPPING. SHE LEFT HER NATIVE COUNTRY JUST OVER 20 YEARS AGO. TODAY AS A FAMILY PHYSICIAN, SHE ENCOURAGES HER PATIENTS TO USE AMERICAN MEDICINE.
[Dr. Bich Chau/Lincoln] I try my best I can in terms of not using coinings or at least if it doesn't work don't use it anymore. I try to apply as much traditional type of medicine in here the United States as I can. Whether I can convince them to use it or not I don't know.
Most of the patients, yea I will try, but whether they are practicing it at home the way they respond to it, I don't know. But recently I haven't seen any case of any adult coming in with evidence of coining in their chest or in their back. So I would assume they are proceeding as the last effective modality so they aren't really using it much anymore.
[Stoner] DOCTOR CHAU SAYS MANY NEW NEBRASKANS ARE OPEN TO AMERICAN MEDICAL APPROACHES ONCE THEY LEARN ABOUT THEM.
[Dr. Chau] I think its more of an education, informative and more so, not only for the newcomer but for the older generation too. Because that's where they have the ideas and the practice formed and give it to the younger generation, if we can't give it to the older one than maybe its more effective.
[Dr. Raymond] We have to uh go the extra mile to make sure they understand where we're coming from, to make sure that the language barriers have done-overcome so they do understand as we try to explain the science of American medicine to them uh that they buy into it.
They may not have had access or health care professional on a daily basis, so they rely on a lot of traditional medicines and herbs.
[Vina Market/Perry Stoner] THE VINA MARKET IN LINCOLN HAS ASSORTED HERBAL PRODUCTS THAT ARE OFTEN POPULAR IN OTHER CULTURES. WITH NO OVERSIGHT BY THE FEDERAL DRUG ADMINISTRATION, MANY MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS URGE CAUTION WITH THEIR USE.
BUT THERE ARE AREAS WHERE CULTURAL PRACTICES AND AMERICAN MEDICINE COME TOGETHER.
[Dr. Raymond] In some cultures midwives are-are the standard of care for the health care of a pregnant woman delivering a baby. In Nebraska, we have laws regulating certified nurse midwives and-and the situations in which they can practice and under whose supervision. And of course, they have to be licensed.
"these needles go into the joint space so it stimulates the joint fluid"
[Stoner] ACUPUNCTURE COMES FROM TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE. NOW THOUSANDS OF YEARS LATER, MANY IN AMERICA ARE TURNING TO IT FOR PAIN RELIEF AND TREATMENT FOR CHRONIC AILMENTS.
[S/Sam Simons/UNMC Licensed Acupuncturist] What's scientific now, 200 years ago was fairly primitive, you know. Its science and technology but it had to evolve from somewhere and you know this is something that's taken thousands of years and still effective in the current day.
[Stoner] SIMONS TREATED UP TO 200 PATIENTS LAST YEAR. HIS PRACTICE AT UNMC IS INDICATION THAT ALTERNATIVE TREATMENTS CAN BECOME ACCEPTED IN MAINSTREAM SOCIETY.
LARRY WILLIS NEVER THOUGHT HE'D TRY ACUPUNCTURE, BUT BAD KNEES FROM 30 YEARS OF PLAYING RACQUETBALL, LEFT HIM LOOKING FOR A WAY TO RELIEVE THE PAIN WITHOUT SURGERY.
[S/Larry Willis/Omaha] He put the needles in the knees and he had me stand up and I had no pain. But I can't walk around with needles in my knees, but its interesting the pressure points and how that can bring some relief.
[Stoner] ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE, CULTURAL AND OTHERWISE, ARE OFTEN BEST AS COMPLEMENTARY TREATMENTS. ITS AN APPROACH SIMONS WOULD LIKE TO SEE BECOME COMMONPLACE.
[Simons] I see a lot of times where people that could be treated with the more simple things up front and it give that a chance to work before going into the more invasive and expensive procedures.
"If you be sick, very, very, very red."
[Stoner] MANY IN THE VIETNAMESE COMMUNITY HOPE COINING AND CUPPING MAY ONE DAY BE ACCEPTED LIKE ACUPUNCTURE.
[Elizabeth Nguyen] It comes along with medicine and a combination will make people feel better.
I've been here 13 years, I still like it, the coining and the cupping when I get sick. When I got a really bad flu with the muscle ache, I like somebodyto perform the coining and the cupping for me.
[Dr. Raymond] I don't want to be a technocrat or a bureaucrat that says, it's our way or else. Cause I just don't think that's necessarily right as long as the child's life is not endangered. As I said, I think an adult can make their own decision and it may or may not be right.
I believe we should not be heavy-handed. We should try to educate and help them make the best decision for them or their family that they can.
[Elizabeth Nguyen] I think it should be left alone because if you don't try it, you don't know. You don't know how helpful it is. Try it and you will know. You will feel better and comfortable after you have coining or cupping you know.
[Stoner] REPORTING FOR STATEWIDE, THIS IS PERRY STONER.