Integration of traditional and Western medicine in the Arara community, Colombian Amazon

Background

Traditional medicine plays a central role in the daily lives of many Indigenous peoples in the Amazon, yet its interaction with Western medicine remains poorly documented. Understanding how communities navigate both systems is essential for developing culturally appropriate and equitable health policies. This study analyses the interaction, coexistence, and relationships between Western and traditional medicine in the indigenous community of Arara, located in the Colombian Amazon, as well as community perceptions of both health systems, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methodology

A concurrent mixed-methods design was employed. A structured household survey was administered in 2022–819 individuals from 161 households, and semi-structured individual and group interviews were conducted with community and institutional informants. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and bivariate analyses, while qualitative data were examined through thematic analysis. Findings were integrated during interpretation to examine treatment choices, perceptions, and health-seeking behaviours.

Results

A total of 85.8% of participants first sought advice from family members or traditional healers when feeling unwell, whereas 11.5% first turned to health institutions. The remaining responses corresponded to less frequent options, such as seeking care from drugstores or waiting for symptoms to improve without seeking outside care. Interviews showed that community leaders and traditional healers played a central role in the spiritual and physical management of health, reinforcing social cohesion during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, 87.2% of the community received at least one vaccine dose, and 70.8% completed the full vaccination schedule. Among participants who reported having had COVID-19, 40.8% relied exclusively on traditional healers, 36.8% combined traditional medicine with support from family and friends, and only 12.1% used both traditional and Western medicine.

Conclusions

Traditional medicine remained the main source of care in Arara, while Western health services were used more selectively and under conditions shaped by distance, service availability, and mistrust. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the community combined biomedical preventive measures with traditional practices, showing that healthcare decisions were strongly mediated by local authorities, cultural beliefs, and community-based forms of care.