We love orthodox medicine but still use our ‘Elewe omo’: Utilization of traditional healers among women in an urban community in Nigeria

BACKGROUND: Traditional Medicine refers to knowledge, skills and practices based on the theories, beliefs and experiences indigenous to different cultures. Women have been reported to utilize orthodox health care facilities more hence this study in an urban center. OBJECTIVE: To determine the utilization of traditional healers, preference of healthcare and co-utilization of traditional and orthodox medicine among women in an urban community in Lagos, Nigeria. METHOD: A cross sectional design using a multistage sampling to select 270 women in Mosan Okunola, Lagos, Nigeria in 2019. A pretested semi-structured intervieweradministered questionnaire and an in-depth interview were used to obtain data from participants. Utilization of traditional healers was referenced within the last 12 months. RESULT: Sixty three percent (63.2%) of the study population utilized traditional healers and 80.6% of respondents that accessed healthcare utilized traditional healers. The Traditional Medicine ingredient dealer was the most patronized (74.6% of respondents). Eighty three percent (83.3%) of study participants indicated preference for orthodox medicine and 53.1% of the study respondents co-utilized both traditional healers and orthodox medicine. Concurrent use of both traditional and orthodox medicine was not a common practice among the women. Level of education, monthly income and means of payment for treatment had a statistical significant association (P < 0.05) with utilization of traditional healers but means of payment for treatment was the singular predictive factor of utilization of traditional healers. CONCLUSION: Utilization of traditional healers among women in this community was high with majority indicating a preference for orthodox medicine. It is recommended that an in-depth history of remedies used by patients should be delved into by orthodox health practitioners.