[Are patients of Asian medicine active consumers?]
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1Fakultät für Soziologie, Universität Bielefeld, Germany. rog.frank@t-online.de
Background:
The hypothesis that heterodox patients are active consumers.
Objective:
What are the decisional criteria that lead patients to Asian medicine? Do they want to be involved in therapeutic decision-making? Are they well informed about diverse therapeutic options?
Methods:
Semistructured interviews with 26 patients using Ayurveda or acupuncture.
Results:
Active consumerism among the patients is limited to processes before the beginning of the treatment. They collect little information about the concepts of Asian medicine. They also tend to welcome a rather paternalistic therapeutic relationship in which medical decision-making is centered around the physician.
Conclusion:
As only two of the 26 interviewed patients conform to the notion of active consumerism, we argue that the majority of patients engages in practices of passive consumerism.