Understanding

Culture Society
Politics
Cultural Health Actors
Cultural Health Actors are specified in
each of the health practices
mentioned. They performed specific
activities that are more or less
associated with flushing, heating, and
protecting. Cultural healers help to
“protect” the body and treat it
supernaturally with herbal/medicinal
treatments, incantations and offerings.
Just like in the biomedical world, the
hierarchy of healers and specialists in
Philippine folk medicine can be
categorized as some sort of specialists in
their own right. For example:

• The Albularyo may be seen as the

“general practitioner”, knowledgeable
in most of the folkloric modalities,
usually especially versed in the use of
medicinal herbs.
• The “hilot” ambiguously refers both to
the manghihilot and magpapaanak.
The manghihilot specializes in
techniques and treatments applicable
to sprains, fractures and muskuloskeletal
conditions. The magpapaanak, besides
prenatal visits and delivering babies,
often performs the suob ritual. Some
healers limit their practice of folkloric
therapies to more specialized
modalities.
• The mangluluop specializes in
diagnostic techniques, usually referring
the patients after diagnosis to the
albularyo, medico, or manghihilot for
definitive treatments.

• The medico is a further specialization,

merging age-old folkloric modalities with
ingredients of western medicine -
'prescription' medications, acupuncture,
etc.
• What sets these cultural health actors
apart is that they consider their healing
craft as God-given, a calling from a
supernatural being, and consequently,
their healing practices are profusely
infused with prayers and religious rituals,
performed through mediation with the
Holy Spirit. Usually rural-based, they are
also present in the urban and suburban
communities, albeit in small scattered
niches, serving burgis alternative needs,
the impoverished or the urban-
transplanted rural folk.
TENK YU
4 LISTENING