Researcher ORCID Identifier
https://orcid.org/0009-0007-1928-0718
Graduation Year
2025
Date of Submission
12-2024
Document Type
Campus Only Senior Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Reader 1
Eileen Cheng
Reader 2
Feng Xiao
Rights Information
© 2024 Susanna Y Lau
Abstract
Since the mid-19th century, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been a powerful tool for San Francisco’s Chinese American immigrants in constructing an identity and building cultural connections among the community in a new society. Only through decades of legal battles and community efforts spearheaded by TCM practitioners & the city’s TCM patients did TCM survive and continue to thrive in San Francisco and throughout California. As we enter the 20th century, Chinese American patients and TCM practitioners alike have noticed differences between Western and TCM medical practices that have impacted the health-seeking behaviors of patients. Today, TCM falls under Complementary and Alternative Medicine, “a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products not presently considered to be part of conventional medicine” (National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine).
How do TCM practitioners & Chinese American patients in the United States, specifically in California, use Traditional Chinese Medicine in tandem with Western medicine in the 21st century? My research surveys TCM practitioners in California to understand how Traditional Chinese Medicine is used along with Western medicine to provide optimal care for patients. Additionally, my research also looks at TCM patients’ health-seeking behaviors between TCM and Western medicine. Providing these perspectives from two different groups will reveal the importance of complementary medicine, specifically Traditional Chinese Medicine, in patient care and emphasize the need for more awareness surrounding this medicine as a healthcare option.
Recommended Citation
Lau, Susanna, "Integrative Medicine Within Western Healthcare: Perspectives of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners & Chinese American Patients" (2025). CMC Senior Theses. 3775.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/3775
This thesis is restricted to the Claremont Colleges current faculty, students, and staff.