The Role of Some Nonbiomedical Parameters in Clinical Decision Making: An Ethnographic Approach

Abstract

A descriptive, as contrasted with a prescriptive, model of biomedical decision making is presented. The ethnographic method, widely used in anthropology, is advocated as a means of eliciting this level of data. Several vignettes are presented to illustrate the complex texture of medical thought and action. The utility of ethnographic approaches in health practitioner education and clinical work is proposed.