By Albertina Nakale
WINDHOEK – Between 500 and 600 Namibians a month flock to the acupuncture unit manned by a team of Chinese doctors at the Katutura State Hospital in Windhoek.
Acupuncture is a component of the health care system of China that can be traced back to at least 2 500 years.
The general theory of acupuncture is based on the premise that there are patterns of energy flow (Qi) through the body that are essential for health.
Disruptions of this flow are believed to be responsible for disease. Acupuncture may, it has been theorized, correct imbalances of flow at identifiable points close to the skin.
The Chinese and the Namibian governments have an agreement through the Ministry of Health and Social Services whereby an acupuncture department was opened in 1996 at the Katutura State Hospital sponsored by the People’s Republic of China.
Namibian patients can be treated free of charge for ailments such as back pains, other chronic pain, stroke, body injuries, gastro diseases, depression, insomnia and high blood pressure, amongst others.
The Chinese government funds the unit and it pays for the acupuncture machines and acupuncture medicine.
Speaking to New Era on Friday, Dr Jiwei Yu who is the head of Chinese doctors designated to the acupuncture department of the Katutura hospital said the Chinese technique of acupuncture is currently recognised and comparable to Western medicine.
He explained that they treat on average between 30 to 40 patients per day and on a monthly basis up to 600.
“Our patients vary from children to the youth and the elderly. We use different acupoints to treat different ailments. Acupuncture and massage is an old ancient treatment dating back some 2 000 years. To this day we use it all over China and it has now spread to other parts of the world including Namibia,” Dr Yu noted.
Further, he said the technique is simple, convenient, effective and not expensive compared to modern medicine.
He also revealed acupuncture does not have side-effects like Western medicine.
“The patients get well when they come here because modern medicine normally does not help them much. We are very happy with the reception we get from our patients. Local people are friendly towards us,” he said.
They are however faced with the language barrier because not all patients speak English. But he said the hospital has given them a nurse who sits at the department to assist with interpreting.
He called on more people to visit the acupuncture department for treatment.
Acupuncture is a family of procedures involving stimulation of anatomical locations on or in the skin by a variety of techniques.
The most thoroughly studied mechanism of stimulation of acupuncture points employs penetration of the skin by thin, solid, metallic needles, which are manipulated manually or by electrical stimulation.