Native People of North America 8
Running Head: NATIVE PEOPLE OF NORTH AMERICA 1
Native People of North America
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Introduction
The Scalpel and the Silver Bear is the autobiography of Dr. Lori Arviso Alvord who is the first female Navajo doctor in the United States. Dr. Navajo was raised in Navajo reservation which is near New Mexico in a small town called Crownpoint. Dr. Alvord was of mixed race where her mother was white, and her father was from Navajo. Therefore, she grew up divided between modern American worlds and Navajo culture. Dr. Navajo’s autobiography seeks to explain the difference between the two cultures of her world. Alvord described how she went beyond the Navajo culture, studied and later practiced medicine in the Navajo reservation. Additionally, she sought to explain the primitivism that the people of Navajo had about medicine at large (Alvord, 2000)
How was growing up in Alvord in the Two Worlds?
Alvord had difficult growing up as a person with mixed race and most especially from Navajo reservation. First, she faced difficult fitting in her college, Dartmouth College, as a result of sexism and racism on campus. The male counterparts did not see it well for ladies to be among them in the medical studies. Moreover, she was of a mixed race and of Navajo origin which was considered a Native American community. Hence this made it hard for her in her time as a female surgeon. Another way Alvord faced difficult when growing-up was when she finished her medical studies and training as a surgeon. Alvord met difficult because she was not feeling qualified enough to treat people hence had to go back to Navajo to consult the traditional healers; halaali to consult with them on how to handle (Alvord, 2000)
Consequently, Alvord integrated her two worlds when she could attend to the Navajo people in her medical training and early attachments. With the help of another Surgeon, Dr. Ron Lujan, another Native American in the field, she was able to know how to work around her Navajo culture about medicine and the modern medicine. She learned how to practice the current medicine and still honor her Navajo traditions which help create a rapport between her and her patients such as touching patients respectfully and only when it is necessary, not rushing patients with answers and treating them as a family to gain their trust. Moreover, Alvord learned the Navajo healers, halaali, the way of treating and caring for the sick had a significant impact on how people got better especially after surgery. Hence she sorted to integrate them into her medical practice. (Alvord, 2000)
Navajo culture as experienced by Alvord
Alvord suffered the Navajo culture in a problematic way full of questions due to her two worlds of being a mixed race. She explains her life as a metaphor of weaving where she views both the warps and the weft as the two worlds she lived and grew up. Due to the hard experience that Alvord grew up in, a life without running water or electricity for almost three decades, she never imagined of achieving what she has accomplished in her life. The thought of being a surgeon never crossed her mind even once. Despite of that, the mother encouraged her to read and avoid the house chores which gave her the opportunity of practicing medicine. As much as Alvord understood her unique life of living in two cultures; cultures of interest in education and accomplishment and the clan and the Navajo people, she was going against her religion, the Dine by explaining about her experiences as an accomplished Navajo culture (Alvord, 2000)
Cultural characteristics among the Navajo
The culture and traditions were mostly directed to create the bond with each other because they believe everything is related and they put it in the form of religion at large. They think that everything is given spirit which brings purpose and connection with everything in the universe. The bonds are mostly experienced through daily prayer they conduct and the ceremonies such as games that they organize especially during winters. Therefore, they believe that for them to experience the connection, they must practice their religious activities on the land that the creators gave them. Therefore their religion is the way of unifying them (Lee, 2006)
The Navajo culture is of functional harmony. The Navajo tend to live in peace both with each other and the universe. They believe living in harmony brings blessings from their creator. They build their homes by paying harmony from their house structures and how they treat their animals. Secondly, the Medicine man in the Navajo culture is considered a prominent figure because he holds the heritage and culture of the people because he has a tie to the past, the people history, myths, and legends. Last but not least, the Navajo culture is mostly concentrated on ceremonies and rituals. The performances last for four, two or one day. The most important rituals that they dwell on are treatments both physical and mental. Since the Navajo people are many in nature, any event of their life is celebrated, like the building of Hogan and planting of crops is celebrated. (Lee, 2006)
Navajo background in medical school and how she changed as a medical student
The Navajo background showed up in her medical school when she was in college and experienced considerable cultural differences between the Navajo and western culture. The Navajo culture advocates for always being reserved, not calling attention to you like speaking up in class, raising voice and making extended eye contact. However, her culture perspective affected her grades as she was not able to be competent in her class work. Alvord experienced cultural differences in her medical school as she found it hard to dissect cadavers fearing for evil spirits, touching patients and asking the patient many questions, which was prohibited in the Navajo culture. As a medical student, Alvord incorporated western and Navajo culture. Alvord was able to treat but still integrate her belief and allowing for patients to practice their religion even in the hospitals (Alvord, 2000)
How Alvord had been culturally uprooted from the Navajo culture after medical school
Alvord discovered she had been culturally uprooted from the Navajo culture when she came back from her medical college and would treat patients without considering the respect of her culture on medicine. She could not incorporate the ideals of Navajo culture which stipulated not raising voice or direct and prolonged eye contact and even touching patients. Moreover, Alvord realized that she was changing after being close with a group of western physicians. These made her start viewing medicine as technical abilities instead of caring and sensitivity as it is in the Navajo culture. Upon realizing she had been foregone her cultural practices, she sorts ways to readjust to the Navajo culture by combining the western medical ideas she had with the traditional aesthetic medicine (Alvord, 2000)
She incorporated treatment of patients and allowed them to explore their culture even in hospitals. For example, she could let for medicine men to come to the hospital and perform their medical procedure to the patient after surgery or treatment. With the help of a Navajo doctor, Dr. Ron Lujan; she started improving on how to treat patients with her culture. She learned that to create trust and the act of caring for her patients when she put first the Navajo culture to the patients before starting the treatment. By choosing to be part of them and learning to respect them, she, later on, created a rapport with her patients and this helped speed up the healing processes of many of her patients (Alvord, 2000)
A contrast between Navajo Ideas of illness, health and caring, and Alvord’s perception
Navajo ideas of disease, health and caring consist of three values; harmony, respect, and spirituality. They describe that the wellbeing of a person revolves around the three domains and they work together to bring mental and physical wellbeing of a person. The Navajo people believe that Hozho is the one that guides one’s thoughts, actions, behaviors and speech and the general wellness of a person. Medical treatment is provided by a medicine man, a person who not only sees a person as one component but as a whole being comprised of body, soul, and mind.
Additionally, the relationship between the patient and the healer is equally essential to bring healing. On the other hand, Alvord compared Navajo wellness to ‘walking beauty’ because she perceived it to be a way one lives a balanced and harmonious life in contact with all parts of the world. Alvord emphasized that it was a path to better health and healing and life and for wellness to be there, ‘walking beauty’ must be there. Navajo stressed that healing was not a one-way thing but multidimensional (Alvord, 2000)
The patients that taught Alvord about the Essence of Navajo culture
Charlie Nez was an old man who has cancer and with the chemotherapy radiations and surgery, he was emaciated. One afternoon the medicine man from Navajo sang to him in the presence of Alvord and after the halaali left, and she checked him, he found that his blood pressure was normal and was stirred up. The treating of Navajo patients with problems with their gallbladder in Gallup hospital in New Mexico, where most of them were Navajo people taught her unless a dying patient has hope and emotional help, the will to leave is minimal (Alvord, 2000)
Alvord later incorporated the idea of Navajo medicine men and women after her studies and being able to practice medicine in Gallup. She considered their way of treatment better as compared to the western culture as it incorporated the whole wellness of a person. Alvord considered visiting one medicine man, Dr. Thomas Hataathili at the time she had experienced issues with her first pregnancy and she was healed and then she decided to enroll modern medicine and her Navajo culture in her medical practices (Alvord, 2000)
Conclusion
Mental and physical well-being is an all-around idea that cannot be achieved if only we use modern medicine. Including people’s culture in their health as Dr. Alvord states is a way that creates trust and brings respect to the patients and thus speeds up the healing process of a patient. As much there is a revolution with new technology like CT scans or any other way of treatment, patients’ culture should be considered and respected before undertaking them to them.
Reference
Alvord, L. (2000). The scalpel and the silver bear. New York: Bantam Books.
Lee, L. (2006). Navajo Cultural Identity: What Can the Navajo Nation Bring to the American Indian Identity Discussion Table?. Wicazo Sa Review, 21(2), 79-103. http://dx.doi.org/10.1353/wic.2006.0020