This picture shows natives of Mithila region of Nepal and India celebrating the Chharth Parva festival
What is Culture ?
Culture refers to the cumulative deposit of knowledge, experience, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of time, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and material objects and possessions acquired by a group of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving. Culture can also be defined as "shared ideas characteristics of a given social group and the patterns of behavior that result from them" (Jarolemon, 2010)
Influence of Culture on Health Beliefs and Practices
This picture shows a traditional healer conducting a healing ceremony for sick baby
The extent to which patients perceive patient education as having cultural relevance for them can have a profound effect on their reception to information provided and their willingness to use it. Western industrialized societies such as the United States, which see disease as a result of natural scientific phenomena, advocate medical treatments that combat microorganisms or use sophisticated technology to diagnose and treat disease. Other societies believe that illness is the result of supernatural phenomena and promote prayer or other spiritual interventions that counter the presumed disfavor of powerful forces.Cultural issues play a major role in patient compliance. The video below shows ritual healing in Peruvian Culture.