Research on the links between religious beliefs and medical decisions in Jaffna, Sri Lanka. Theoretically
This research project aims to explore the ways in which religious beliefs affect the medical-decision making of Sri Lankans in Jaffna. Due to the medically pluralistic environment of Jaffna, many citizens employ complex combinations of both biomedical and spiritual healing modalities. Many Sri Lankans have adopted informal guidelines according to their belief systems that dictate which medical healing modalities they seek when illness arises. In order to investigate the ways in which biomedical and spiritual thought intersect in Jaffna, this research will be conducted through certain interviews, observation of patient-doctor interactions, Point Pedro Hospital, Jaffna District. The main objectives of this research project are to give insight into the various etiologies of disease that are adopted by both the biomedical and spiritual healing systems in Jaffna, to identify complementary aspects of both explanatory models of these systems, and to further propose practical steps towards building trust and collaboration between these systems and in patient-healer relationships in order to ultimately take steps toward improving health outcomes in partnering institutions within Jaffna.
Background
Due to the medically pluralistic environment of Jaffna and the surrounding areas, many people in Jaffna employ complex combinations of both biomedical and spiritual healing modalities. While researching the connections between faith and medicine in Jaffna public school study programs, it became evident to me that many people in Jaffna have adopted informal guidelines according to their belief systems that dictate which medical healing modalities they seek when illness arises. Often times, patients perceive a dichotomy between physical and spiritual healing, which leads them to trust one realm of healing over another. In particular, some religious patients approach biomedical care with skepticism, ensuring that they seek biomedical care only in conjunction with a more spiritual form of healing. In some of these instances, trust is violated between patients and physicians due to both parties’ miscommunication and misunderstanding of beliefs about disease causation. Consequently, overall patient care is undermined.
General Aims/Long Term Objectives:
This research project aims to explore the ways in which religious beliefs affect the medical decision-making of people in Jaffna. The overarching inquiries of this research resemble questions posed in global health research projects in medically pluralistic environments: How does faith in spiritual healing affect patient-healer relationships in both the clinical and spiritual realms? How are patients’ explanatory models of diseases influenced by both the biomedical and spiritual systems? What are some commonalities among the two healing modalities that shed light on ways to collaborate between systems and improve patient care? Researching these questions will give insight into the ways that trusting relationships can be fostered and common understandings can be reached between patient and physician and between biomedical and traditional healthcare paradigms. This in turn will allow patients to receive the healing they ultimately seek and allow physicians to accomplish the goal of assisting their patients in achieving a state of overall wellness.
To conduct this research, I will develop a target community of Jaffna residents who frequent biomedical clinics but also believe in spiritual origins of disease. I will ensure that it is a diverse group, including a variety of ages, genders, and religious backgrounds. I want to learn how this population conceptualizes the etiology and treatment of disease. Do they see diseases such as malaria and hypertension as spiritual illnesses? Or might they be strictly biomedical? Or do both biomedicine and spirit interact, and/or complement one another in accounting for sickness? These questions are as follows:
Questionnaire
* What do you call your problem? What name does it have? * What do you think caused your problem? * What does your sickness do to you? How does it work? * How severe is your sickness? How long do you expect it to last? * What do you fear most about your illness? * What are the biggest problems that your illness has caused for you? * What kind of treatment do you think you should receive?
The primary site where many of these patients will be found is the Point Pedro Hospital, Jaffna District (central government). It is a government hospital in Point Pedro, Sri Lanka. It is controlled by the provincial government in Jaffna. As of 2010 it had 264 beds. The hospital is sometimes called Point Pedro Base Hospital.

Finally, I will be doing this research project by the help of my very good friends back in Jaffna, which is my home town. Also, it would be my luck to engage in a momentous research project.