Culturally Rooted Care: Integrating Whole-Person Approaches to Health in Nepal

By Madomi Kusano, Perspectives Graphic Designer (2024-2025)

Editorials are special contributions made by members of the Perspectives Editorial Board.

In the hills of rural Nepal, one suffering from chronic pain might visit both a local clinic and a shaman –– seeking not only physical relief but also spiritual balance. This reflects a broader reality: for many in Nepal, experiences of illness and healing transcend medicine and are interwoven with relationships, rituals, and meaning (1). The country is home to diverse medical systems, including Ayurvedic medicine, Tibetan therapies, modern Western biomedicine, and faith-healing traditions, each with its own body of knowledge, beliefs, and institutions (2). While not all of these systems are equally prevalent, faith healing remains deeply embedded in the cultural consciousness, whereas Western medicine, though increasingly accessible, has yet to achieve the same cultural resonance. This compartmentalization contributes to gaps in care, particularly in a context where illness is often understood in spiritual or moral terms (3). Thus, integrating whole-person care offers a powerful path forward, aligning with cultural understandings of health in Nepal, helping to build trust, and creating more responsive and compassionate care systems.

Whole-person care is a holistic health approach recognizing individuals as complex beings shaped by physical, emotional, social, and spiritual factors. Rather than focusing solely on symptoms or disease, it seeks to understand the patient’s broader life context –– beliefs, relationships, environment, and personal meaning (4). This model is inherently patient-centred, emphasizing deep listening, shared decision-making, and the importance of healing over simply curing (5). In global health contexts, whole-person care also calls attention to the social and cultural dimensions of illness, offering a more inclusive alternative to strictly biomedical frameworks. By valuing the individual’s lived experience, this approach invites care that is not only more compassionate but also more effective, especially in culturally diverse settings like Nepal.

Integrating whole-person care into Nepal’s health system encounters several structural and cultural barriers, however. The biomedical models that dominate global health policy often leave little space for the spiritual or emotional dimensions of care. Additionally, many health workers lack training in culturally sensitive practices or mental health support, particularly in rural and post-disaster settings. After Nepal’s 2015 earthquake, for example, international medical aid largely focused on immediate physical needs, overlooking the long-term psychological and spiritual trauma experienced by many communities (6). Yet, crises like these also reveal a critical opportunity: a widespread demand for healing beyond clinical care. The Programme for Improving Mental Health Care (PRIME) in Nepal illustrates the potential for integrating psychosocial care into primary healthcare by training community health workers to deliver culturally grounded mental health support. Rather than displacing traditional systems, PRIME collaborates with them, recognizing and respecting local understandings of distress (7). This model offers a compelling blueprint for how whole-person care can be adapted to low-resource, post-crisis contexts –– strengthening the health system and the community’s capacity to heal on its own terms.

As Nepal approaches “developing country” status in November 2026, the need for inclusive, culturally relevant healthcare becomes even more pressing (8). Whole-person care provides an opportunity to bridge traditional healing practices with modern medical systems. It promotes a more holistic approach to health and social inclusion, promoting a healthcare system that respects Nepal’s rich cultural diversity while addressing the complex needs of its population. This transition is not only about improving infrastructure, but about fostering a healthcare system that is responsive to the lived experiences of the Nepali people –– ultimately advancing both health equity and national development.

Madomi Kusano

completed her undergraduate degree in International Development Studies student at McGill University. Madomi is deeply interested in medical anthropology and whole person care. With a focus on understanding the intersection of cultural practices, health systems, and individual well-being, she aims to contribute to a more inclusive and compassionate understanding of healthcare.

References

1. Pham, T.V ., et al. (2021). Traditional Healers and Mental Health in Nepal: A Scoping Review. Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry vol. 45(1): 97-140. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11013-020-09676-4.

2. Streefland, P. (1985). The Frontier of Modern Western Medicine in Nepal. Social Science & Medicine vol. 20(11): 1151-1159. https://doi.org/10.1016/0277-9536(85)90192-3.

3. Atreya, A., et al. (2023). Barriers to Mental Health Care Access in Nepal. Medico-Legal Journal vol. 91(1): 54-55. https://doi.org/10.1177/00258172221141293.

4. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Whole Person Health: What it is and why it’s important. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/whole-person-health-what-it-is-and-why-its-important.

5. Schlitz, M., & Valentina, E. (2013). Twelve Essential Tools for Living the Life of Whole Person Health Care. The Permanente Journal vol. 17(4): e155-e157. https://doi.org/10.7812/TPP/13-089.

6. Goyet, S., et al. (2018). Post-earthquake Health-service Support, Nepal. Bulletin of the World Health Organization vol. 96(4): 286–291. https://doi.org/10.2471/BLT.17.205666.

7. Prime - Nepal | MHIN. Mental Health Innovation Network. https://www.mhinnovation.net/innovations/prime-nepal.

8. LDC Graduation - Smooth Transition Strategy. UNDP. https://www.undp.org/nepal/publications/ldc-graduation-smooth-transition-strategy.