Medical anthropology is a sub-branch of anthropology that is concerned with the application of anthropological and social science theories and methods to questions about health, illness and healing. Some medical anthropologists are trained primarily in anthropology as their main discipline, while others have studied anthropology after training and working in health or related professions such as medicine, nursing or psychology. Medical anthropologists conduct research in settings as diverse as rural villages and urban hospitals and clinics. They may teach medical anthropology in university anthropology departments, medical and nursing schools and in community-based settings. Initiation rite of the Yao people of Malawi Anthropology (from the Greek word , man or person) consists of the study of humanity (see genus Homo). ... Initiation rite of the Yao people of Malawi Anthropology (from the Greek word , man or person) consists of the study of humanity (see genus Homo). ... The social sciences are groups of academic disciplines that study the human aspects of the world. ... This article is about the field and science of medical practice and health care. ... Nursing is a profession focused on assisting individuals, families and communities in attaining, re-attaining and maintaining optimal health and functioning. ... Psychology is an academic and applied field involving the scientific study of mental processes and behavior. ...

Themes and questions in medical anthropology include:

• Development of systems of medical knowledge and health care
• Patient-practitioner relationships
• Integrating alternative medical systems in culturally diverse environments
• The interactions between biological, environmental and social factors influencing health and illness at both individual and community levels
• The impacts of biomedicine and biomedical technologies in non-Western settings

There is a Society for Medical Anthropology, part of the American Anthropological Association Cultural diversity is the variety of human societies or cultures in a specific region, or in the world as a whole. ...

Further reading

• John Janzen, The Social Fabric of Health: An Introduction to Medical Anthropology, McGraw-Hill Publishing Co. 2001
• Encyclopedia of medical anthropology : health and illness in the world's cultures, ed. by Carol R. Ember, New York: Springer, 2004

External links

• Information on Medical Anthropology in Asia