A groundbreaking collaboration between the public health system and conventional Mapuche medicine is underway in Chile’s La Araucanรญa region.Seven patients from the San josรฉ de Coronel Hospital in Coronel, Biobรญo Region, have been voluntarily referred to receive treatment from a Machi (traditional healer) within the Mapuche ancestral territory near Ercilla, La Araucanรญa. This marks a critically important step towards integrating ancestral practices into mainstream healthcare.
The patients are receiving care in a ruca, a traditional Mapuche dwelling, located in the Quilaco sector.Machi Irene Regle,a respected ancestral health agent with over five years of experience serving patients from as far as Talca and Graneros,is providing the treatment. Machi Regle utilizes traditional diagnostic methods,such as urine analysis,to determine ailments and prescribes remedies based on medicinal herbs and traditional practices. She explained her process: “First we see the patient’s urine and when I look at that I can tell you what it has. I give it the treatment, which can be with medicinal herbs or with remedy.”
This initiative is spearheaded by the Special Health program and Indigenous Peoples (Pespi) of the Colonel Hospital. Through 2024, Pespi has facilitated 123 referrals to Machi Regle, with a notable 107 patients identifying as non-Indigenous, indicating a broadening appeal of traditional healing. The treatments offered include Ngutanchefe, a bone-setting practice, offering 14 distinct therapeutic benefits.
Soraya Araneda, a 59-year-old resident of san Pedro de la Paz, is among the patients seeking relief from Fibromyalgia. She sought the Machi’s assistance as a complementary approach to conventional medicine for her mother. “The Machi gave me exactly the diagnosis I already had.I will use this medicine that is natural and complementary.You have to open up to new possibilities,” Araneda stated.