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Patients seek cures from a variety of medical systems. In the traditional medical systems, medical traditions partly cover other sectors of social life. In contrast to traditional health care system, the official health care system is based on Western science and technology. Gaddis employ different ways in case of sickness. Traditional medical knowledge is coded in to household cooking practices, home remedies; ill health prevention and health maintenance beliefs and routines. Like other rural parts of India, health care in Bharmour among Gaddis is characterised by medical pluralism. Among Gaddis, the health care includes self care, consultation with traditional healers-chela; and /or primary health care. Spirit possession is acknowledged as an illness among Gaddis. The cause is a spirit, the effect is spirit possession and the cure is controlled spirit possession. Among Gaddis, deities and evil spirits possess men as well as women. It is believed by Gaddis that traditional medical system is competent of restoring health of the body (herbs) or the mind (chela). Modern education, technology, biomedicine has not threatened the traditional therapeutic healing as there are no alternatives. The integration of the two systems is conceptual. These systems just co-exist, side-by-side. To dismiss traditional medical systems as ineffective or weak is to overlook their relevance and benefits in the contexts of their socio-cultural systems. At the same the shortcomings of modern medical systems: their technical complexity, rising costs, curative rather than preventive focus, and limited accessibility for large population sectors can not be overlooked.

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This study was conceived against the hunches of seemingly inadequate knowledge and blatant stigmatization of leprosy sufferers amongst health practitioners in Nigeria. It aimed at relating health workers knowledge and consequent attitude towards leprosy patients. Five hundred and eighty seven health workers comprising males and females drawn from government and private owned health care infrastructures participated in this study. A knowledge-Attitude structured questionnaire was used to measure the relationship between the respondent's knowledge and attitude variables towards leprosy patients. Results using simple percentages and the Statistical package for Social Science (SPSS) version 9, specifically the Pearson product moment correlation confirmed that health workers' above average knowledge of leprosy relates positively with attitudes towards leprosy patients(r = 0.62, d.f = 585;<.05, two-tailed test). The Researcher suggested that knowledge be further improved in order to sustain positive attitudes of health workers towards sufferers of leprosy.

This study is aimed at determining the cultural factors (beliefs, traditional religious practices, and customs) blocking the utilization of orthodox medicine among peoples of Nigeria represented in this research by natives of Warri area of Delta State in the Niger-Delta region of Nigeria. With the use of multi-stage cluster sampling technique 190 natives sampled, participated in this study. A structured interview schedule containing a 13-item question translated in pidgin English (the lingua franca in the region) was used by ten research assistants who hail from the selected communities to elicit information from both literate and illiterate natives. The chi-square statistic result (P 2 (8) = 26.83, P < .05) shows that some ethnic beliefs, customs and traditions are very significant cultural factors blocking the use of orthodox medicine. It was recommended that governments at all levels should put in place information, education and communication (IEC) activities in order to encourage appropriate choice of medical care amongst Nigerians.