Ethnomédecine et prise en charge du //yie mum// hémiplégie chez les Bamoun à l’ouest-Cameroun

Abstract

This work is entitled “Ethnomédecine et prise en charge du yiémum hémiplégie chez les Bamoun à l’Ouest-Cameroun”. It raises the problem of therapeutic recourse. Indeed, the treatment of hemiplegia in conventional medicine is effective and does not suffer from any criticism apart from some after-effects which always remain observable in former patients and the permanent risk of relapse. However, in the Bamoun community, traditional doctors sometimes associated with biomedicine with both physical and physiological results in former patients. The main question raised by this problem is to know, what is the contribution of the Bamoun cultural group in the global therapy of Yiémum (hemiplegia)? To this question we formulated the hypothesis according to which the Bamoun cultural group affirms that the understanding and treatment of hemiplegia goes beyond simple Western scientific reasoning specifically affecting cultural aspects. The main objective of this study is therefore to highlight the beliefs and knowledge, attitudes and therapeutic practices of Yiémum by the Bamoun cultural group around the causes, consequences and treatments in order to determine their contribution to the overall management of the 'hemiplegia. The qualitative method made it possible to collect secondary data and primary data using appropriate techniques and tools. The data collected was analyzed using the content analysis technique and the results were interpreted in the light of a theoretical framework built around the social representations of Dénis Jodelet. To these theories we have added the principles of African epistemology mentioned by Mbonji Edjenguèlè to explain certain therapeutic principles used in the context of Yiémum care by Bamoun specialists. These methodological processes made it possible to achieve results and the most relevant are the following: The therapeutic syncretism adopted by traditional Bamoun doctors by combining biomedicine interventions contributes to the total healing of patients; beyond the biological and metabolic causes the Yiémum also has metaphysical causes which relate to the non-respect of certain social prohibitions and the behavior of individuals towards the group; the manifestations of hemiplegia are identical for both conventional medicine and traditional Bamoun medicine but the traditional treatment methods are linked to the etiology identified by the treating person; emergency management in the event of damage to vital organs is reserved only for biomedical resuscitators who ensure the balance of the internal environment essential to the survival of patients; human wickedness, the anger of ancestors and non-respect of traditional values, the presence of totems etc. are all causes attributed to the disease; the traditional therapies offered by the Bamoun cultural group lead to the healing of patients whose vital prognosis in biomedicine was uncertain