Occupational hazards of traditional healers: Repeated unprotected blood exposures risk infectious disease transmission

OBJECTIVE: Healers provide support for acute and chronic illnesses in rural Mozambique, such as socially acceptable traditional "vaccinations" (subcutaneous cuts in the skin to rub herbs directly into the bloody lesion). We aimed to document the frequency of blood exposure by traditional practitioners in Mozambique. METHODS: We conducted surveys with a simple random sample of 236 traditional healers in Zambezia province. Chi-square and Wilcoxon rank sum tests were used to compare "injection" behaviors across districts. RESULTS: Healers treated a median of 8 patients in the past month (IQR: 4-15). 75% conducted "injections". These healers "injected" a median of 4 patients (IQR: 1-8), used a new razor a median of 3 times (IQR: 1-8), and almost never used gloves. Lifetime blood exposures among those who provided "injections" during treatments were estimated to be 1,758 over a healer's career. CONCLUSION: The majority of healers is exposed repeatedly to patient blood. Given the high prevalence of HIV, hepatitis B and C virus, and other blood-borne agents, specific healer practices are an occupational hazard and reuse of razors is risky for their clients. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. Language: en