Citation

Nyika A. Dev. World Bioeth. 2007; 7(1): 25-34.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1471-8847.2006.00157.x

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

It has been estimated that more than 80% of people in Africa use traditional medicine (TM). With the HIV/AIDS epidemic claiming many lives in Africa, the majority of people affected rely on TM mainly because it is relatively affordable and available to the poor populations who cannot afford orthodox medicine. Whereas orthodox medicine is practiced under stringent regulations and ethical guidelines emanating from The Nuremburg Code,1 African TM seems to be exempt from such scrutiny. Although recently there have been calls for TM to be incorporated into the health care system, less emphasis has been placed on ethical and regulatory issues.