Use of indigenous and indigenised medicines to enhance personal well-being: a South African case study

An estimated 27 million South Africans use indigenous medicines (Mander, 1997, Medicinal plant marketing and strategies for sustaining the plant supply in the Bushbuckridge area and Mpumalanga Province. Institute for Natural Resources, University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa). Although herbal remedies are freely available in amayeza stores, or Xhosa chemists, for self-medication, little is known about the motivations of consumers. According to African belief systems, good health is holistic and extends to the person's social environment. The paper makes a distinction between traditional medicines which are used to enhance personal well-being generally and for cultural purposes, on the one hand, and medicines used to treat physical conditions only, on the other. Drawing on an eight-month study of Xhosa chemists in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, in 1996, the paper identifies 90 medicines in stock which are used to enhance personal well-being. Just under one-third of all purchases were of medicines to enhance well-being. Remedies particularly popular included medicines believed to ward off evil spirits and bring good luck. The protection of infants with medicines which repel evil spirits is a common practice. Consumer behaviours indicate that the range of medicines available is increased by indigenisation of manufactured traditional medicines and cross-cultural borrowing. Case studies confirm that self- and infant medication with indigenous remedies augmented by indigenised medicines plays an important role in primary health care by allaying the fears and anxieties of everyday life within the Xhosa belief system, thereby promoting personal well-being

Transfusion strategies in bleeding critically ill adults : A clinical practice guideline from the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine: Endorsement by the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine

The Clinical Practice Committee of the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine endorses the clinical practice guideline Transfusion strategies in bleeding critically ill adults: a clinical practice guideline from the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine. This trustworthy clinical practice guideline serves as a useful decision aid for Nordic anaesthesiologists caring for critically ill patients with bleeding.Non peer reviewe

Clinical practice guideline on prevention of rhabdomyolysis induced acute kidney injury : Endorsement by the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine

The Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine Clinical Practice Committee endorses the recent DASAIM/DSIT guideline for prevention of rhabdomyolysis-induced acute kidney injury. However, we emphasize the low quality of evidence with only weak recommendations for all interventions, highlighting that further research is very likely to have an important impact on the confidence in the estimate of effect and is likely to change the estimates.Peer reviewe

Therapeutics and COVID-19-A living WHO guideline : Endorsement by the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine

The Clinical Practice Committee of the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine endorses the Living WHO guideline on therapeutics and COVID-19. This trustworthy continuously updated guideline serves as a highly useful decision aid for Nordic anaesthesiologists caring for patients with COVID-19.Non peer reviewe

Regional anaesthesia in patients on antithrombotic drugs - a joint ESAIC/ESRA guideline : Endorsement by the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine

The Clinical Practice Committee of the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine endorses the clinical practice guideline Regional anaesthesia in patients on antithrombotic drugs - a joint ESAIC/ESRA guideline. This clinical practice guideline serves as a useful decision aid for Nordic anaesthesiologists providing regional anaesthesia to adult patients on antithrombotic drugs.Non peer reviewe

Surviving sepsis campaign : International guidelines for management of sepsis and septic shock in adults 2021-endorsement by the Scandinavian society of anaesthesiology and intensive care medicine

The Clinical Practice Committee of the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine endorses the clinical practice guideline Surviving sepsis campaign: international guidelines for management of sepsis and septic shock 2021. The guideline serves as a useful bedside decision aid for clinicians managing adults with suspected and confirmed septic shock and sepsis-associated organ dysfunction.Non peer reviewe

Clinical practice guideline on the management of septic shock and sepsis-associated organ dysfunction in children : Endorsement by the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine

Background The Clinical Practice Committee of the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine endorses the clinical practice guideline Surviving Sepsis Campaign International Guidelines for the Management of Septic Shock and Sepsis-Associated Organ Dysfunction in Children. The guideline can serve as a useful decision aid for clinicians managing children with suspected and confirmed septic shock and sepsis-associated organ dysfunction.Non peer reviewe

Endorsement of clinical practice guidelines by the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine

Clinical practice guidelines from other organizations or societies with assumed clinical and contextualized relevance for Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (SSAI) members, may trigger a formal evaluation by The Clinical Practice Committee (CPC) for possible SSAI endorsement. This avoids unnecessary duplicate processes and minimizes resource-waste. Identified guidelines are assessed for endorsement using the Appraisal of Guidelines for REsearch and Evaluation (AGREE) II instrument. The SSAI CPC utilizes the AGREE II online coordinated group appraisal platform to assess the methodological rigor and transparency in which the guideline was developed. The results of the assessment, including the decision to endorse or not, are presented to the SSAI Board for sanctioning. This document briefly outlines the process for evaluation of non-SSAI guidelines by the CPC for possible SSAI endorsement.Peer reviewe

Clinical practice guideline on spinal stabilisation of adult trauma patients : Endorsement by the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine

The Clinical Practice Committee of the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine endorses the clinical practice guideline New clinical guidelines on the spinal stabilisation of adult trauma patients-consensus and evidence based. The guideline can serve as a useful decision aid for clinicians caring for patients with traumatic spinal cord injury. However, it is important to acknowledge that the overall certainty of evidence supporting the guideline recommendations was low, implying that further research is likely to have an important impact on the confidence in the estimate of effect.Peer reviewe

Clinical practice guideline on gastrointestinal bleeding prophylaxis for critically ill patients : Endorsement by the Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine

The Scandinavian Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine Clinical practice Committee endorses the BMJ Rapid Recommendation Gastrointestinal bleeding prophylaxis for critically ill patients-a clinical practice guideline. The guideline serves as a useful decision aid for clinicians caring for critically ill patients, and can be used together with clinical experience to decide whether a specific critically ill patient may benefit from gastrointestinal bleeding prophylaxis.Peer reviewe