Attitudes and perceptions of traditional health practitioners towards documentation of patient health information in their practice in eThekwini Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, Natal Province, South Africa.

Background: Documentation of patient health information in the form of patient medical records (PMRs) is an essential, ethical and regulatory requirement in any healthcare system. African traditional medicine (ATM) exists parallel to biomedicine and continues to play a significant role in primary healthcare of the majority of South Africans. The World Health Organization (WHO) has promoted the integration of ATM into the national health system of South Africa.

Knowledge and documentation of patient health information among traditional health practitioners in urban and peri-urban areas of eThekwini Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa.

Background: Documentation of patient health information (PHI) is a regulatory requirement and hence a standard procedure in allopathic healthcare practice. The opposite is true for African traditional medicine (ATM) in most African countries, including South Africa, despite legal and policy frameworks that recognise and mandate the institutionalisation of ATM. Developing good practice standards for PHI documentation is an essential step in the institutionalisation of ATM.