Pengobatan Tradisional, Upaya Meminimalkan Biaya Kesehatan Masyarakat Desa di Jawa

Background: Traditional medicine is frequently perceived asnegative and even though many people still practice. It the useof traditional medicine is mainly due cause to tradition. Thevillager tends to use traditional medicine as primary healing.This article tried to identify frequent diseases among Javaneseand economic capability to afford health cost.Methods: Ethnography study using observation and in-depthinterviewamong 48 informants and 6 key informant of peasantcommunity in Sleman, DIY and fisherman in Rembang, CentralJava, during 2007-2008. Phenomenology approach used duringdata collection and analysis.Result: Masuk angin (wind illness) is a disease whichfrequently occur among the villager. Traditional medicine wasapplied because it is inexpensive, easy, effective and suitablewith the cognitive related to the harmony (equilibrium). Theprinciple of coining was binary opposition such as: hot x cold;loose x tight; angin masuk x angin keluar; better x awful andthe equilibrium is the basic rational of traditional medicine.Recommendation: Traditional medicine must be recognizedby the government and should be in equal position to modernmedicine in order to reduce negative opinion, so the rational ofit is recognized by others.Keywords: holistic, traditional, masuk angin, effective, chea