Thinking rural health in Santal community in West Bengal: An interprofessional bottom-up approach to rural health

Abstract

Background An interprofessional and cross-cultural pedagogical project in community health for students in nursing, social work, anthropology and medicine at the end of the bachelor’s degree begun in 2014. After a rural context fieldwork in several Santal villages of West Bengal (India), students had to conduct a research project, based on a community-health topic. Aims This paper describes how such a pedagogical project, introducing students to ethnographic research, can initiate new ways of thinking for possible future health interventions in rural communities. Methods An inductive approach based on ethnography was used during the fieldwork, including observations, interviews, focus groups and local documentation. Results Our observations led to the finding that actions in rural health cannot be initiated without: promoting an interprofessional/interdisciplinary perspective and a culture of complexity and reflectivity; considering local populations in transition and not in a fixed homogenous situation; understanding more than imposing; taking into account local disease classification and local pragmatic solutions; considering the dialogue between bio-medicine and therapeutic pluralism; considering local perceptions and practices; considering care itineraries/pathways; and finally being conscious of our apostolic function. Conclusion Our interprofessional pedagogical project promotes a bottom-up approach in dialogue with a global health vision.