Chapter I

Introduction

1.1 Research Background

Habits if we do it continously, it will produce a culture. Most people believe

that habits can be helpful for their life. Moreover we lived in Indonesia which have
many provinces and cultures. So, it can make most people believe that cultures are
habits which must do by theirself because it from their generation. Especially cultures
in health. It mostly about traditional medicine that they used because they think that it
is cheaper than they must go to doctor or hospital.

For example in my hometown in Surabaya. I lived in there and I know that

there are many cultures to make person can be heal from a disease with used
traditional medicine which most people always do it. One of them is how to make
her/himself can be heal from cough disease with used Kaempferia Galanga or in
Indonesian means “Kencur”. Kaempferia Galanga is spices which mostly used for
cook and sometimes there are some people who didn’t know about it and what the
benefits of it.

1.2 Purposes

Knowing about Surabaya’s culture especially in health which used traditional

medicine like a Kaempferia Galanga to make people can be heal from cough disease
and introduce people who didn’t know what the benefits of Kaempferia Galanga.

1.3 Benefits

Increase knowledge people about what is my hometown culture especially in

traditional medicine and tell the benefits of Kaempferia Galanga.
 Chapter II

Literature Review

2.1 Nursing in Culture

2.1.1 Definition of Nursing in Culture

Nursing in Culture is practice of health to make other people can be

heal from a disease with used culture’s habit. Besides that, we are as a nurse
on the future must be understand with kind of cultures that the client has, it
because there are so many cultures in a population in this country. For
example culture’s habit which used traditional medicine that the client
sometimes compare traditional medicine and medicines from hospital.

Especially in this country, a way of life and human’s lifestyle is

phenomenon which can be attributed to the appearance kinds of disease,
besides the results of various cultures can caused disease too.

Some people and traditional healers have two concepts which can
caused a disease, that is naturalistic and personalistic. They said that cause of
naturalistic is someone who got a disease because of her/his neighborhod,
foods, bad habits, imbalance body, also include belief like their body became
hot and cold which like catching a cold disease and conginetal disease.

Then for personalistic is cause of intervention from an active agent

who is creature but they’re not human (ghost, ancestor) or human (wizard or
shaman). So, they used traditional medicine and prefer go to traditional healers
than must go to doctor.

2.1.2 Example in Real Life

People who lived in Jatiarjo Village, Pasuruan, East Java still used
“suwuk” as the one of treatment choice. Even though this village which near
from the Taman Safari II have the facility of health and medical personnal
who is adequate. “Suwuk” is traditional medicine with used some spells and
prays from a shaman which placed in glass of water or a potion from some
 plants. This medicine is not only for human, but it can also for things like
wedding invitation until work application letter.

That’s phenomenon make some students from Brawijaya University

interest and did a research in there. Traditional medicine in Jatiarjo have two
steps. First, the shaman will check the disease of the patient with used some
detection techniques. That techniques is doing some massage in the fingers of
hands and foot and also patient’s hand, used of heirlooms which like kris,
analysist the medical history from what the patient said, until did
communication between the shaman and ghost from that village.

After do that, the next step is application from the methods of

“suwuk”. This treatment in Jatiarjo did to the patient with used combination of
the others techniques which like massage and give the patient a herbal potion.
And then, after he knows what the disease from the patient, the patient can be
healed with massage techniques which used whisik oil.

The student said that this traditional medicine “suwuk” which still
available in Jatiarjo cause of some factors social-culture. People still believe
with magical things and believe that some diseases are not reasonable, so it
can’t be heal with used medical treatment.

Besides that, the others factor which make that traditional medicine
still survive is habits of people who came from their generation and searching
a treatment which is fit or not.

2.2 Traditional Medicine

2.2.1 Definition of Traditional Medicine

Traditional medicine is is the sum total of the knowledge, skills, and

practices based on the theories, beliefs, and experiences indigenous to
different cultures, whether explicable or not, used in the maintenance of health
 as well as in the prevention, diagnosis, improvement or treatment of physical
and mental illness (WHO 2000).

Besides that, traditional medicine also the one of alternative medicine

Which can be defined as the method of treatment chosen by a person in the
manner conventional treatment does not produce satisfactory results (Asmino,
1995).

2.2.2 Kind of Traditional Medicines

According to the Amino (1995), traditional treatment have two steps to

make people can be heal. That is massage, compress, acunpuncture, and
traditional medicine which used ingredients from this nature. Traditional
medicine has three types, that is from some plants which like fruit, leaf, stem
bark. Second, medicines which put from some animals which like bones,
glands, or it meats and third is from mineral resources or some salts which can
get it from water springs in the soil, for example water springs of zam-zam
water which placed in Makkah.

2.2.3 Benefits of Traditional Medicines

Benefits of traditional medicines is cheaper than we must buy chemical

medicines or medical medicines. Besides that, traditional medicines don’t used
chemical ingredients which can caused some risks for our body.

Indonesian people realized that effects from used medicines which

contains any chemical ingredients can caused some risks that we didn’t want
to get it. Because of that many people choose to used traditional medicine to
make their disease can be heal.

Most people also think that traditional medicines are more safety
because it used nature ingredients which for a long time won’t caused a bad
effects for our body. Then, the others benefits of traditional medicines are easy
to find it in around our house and traditional market. Because of that too, most
people prefer to used it besides that it their habits from their generation to
make their body can be heal from a disease.
2.3 Kaempferia Galanga

2.3.1 Definition of Kaempferia Galanga

(Picture 2.3.1  Kaempferia Galanga known as “Kencur”)

Kaempferia Galanga is a zingiberaceous medicinal plant distributed in

the tropics and subtropics of Asia and Africa and this plant can be used for
cook too.

The position of plants in plant’s nomenclature (systematic) is :

Division : Spermatophyta

Subdivision : Angiospermae

Class : Monocotyledonae

Order : Zingiberales

Family : Zingiberceae

Genus : Kaempferia

Species : Kaempferia galanga L (Van Steenis, 1947).

2.3.2 Benefits of Kaempferia Galanga

Until now, Kaempferia Galanga has been used for tonic, that is swollen
medicine, cough medicine, stomachache medicine, less body sweats, appetite
enhancer, bacterial infection, expectorant (pull out sputum fast), dysentery,
carminative, for make our body can be warm, for body slimming, for body
 refreshing , medicate wounds and stomach which got swollen, gout, cough
medicine, stomachache (Anonymous, 2000).

Rhizome of Kaempferia Galanga can be used for cough medicine,

swollen medicine, appetite enhancer, and also as a fresh drink for our body
(Rukmana, 1994).

2.3.3 Methods of Traditional Medition used Kaempferia Galanga

Kaempferia Galanga contains starch, mineral, astsiri oil which is

sineol, methyl cans, cinnamic acid, dacinic acid, and alkaloids. From that
content, health benefits that can be taken from Kaempferia Galanga is that
plant can be diarrhea medicine, flu, headache, and sprains. But the best benefit
that people always know is for cough medicine.

Some methods to make a cough medicine from this plant is with used
Kaempferia Galanga and a little of salts. First, grated Kaempferia Galanga and
put that essence. Add a little of water to make the taste not too thick and spicy,
then stirring it all. This potion can be drink after we had breakfast and before
we go to sleep so that cough disease can be heal soon. Besides that,
Kaempferia Galanga has a warm sensation which can make our body be warm
and make our breathing be smooth.

The other of methods that we can do for cough medicine is with grated
Kaempferia Galanga until it became smooth. Meanwhile, boiled a cup of
water on the pan. Add that Kaempferia Galanga which has been grated on the
pan, and boiled until it is boilling. Strain it and drink it twice a day for make
cough disease can be heal.

2.3.4 Example in Real Life

I was born in Surabaya and I lived in Surabaya too. So, I choose that
topics because of my mother gave me the information about Kaempferia
Galanga. Kaempferia Galanga is traditional medicine which used for cough
disease, although there are so many benefits of that plant.
 When my mother got cough disease, she always use this plant to make
her can be heal from that disease. She used some methods to make a potion for
herself and she never replace that traditional medicine with the others. She
told me that she got the information about that plant from my grandmother.
Evidently, my grandmother always use this method since she was young and
my mother also told me that my grandmother got it from her grandmother. So,
from that I think that is habit from generation to generation then it became a
culture. Cultures in health which can’t be replaced although now everything is
modern and there are so many things that we can be used for healing our body.
But my mother still used that methods.

Besides my mother, evidently my aunty and my father also used it. I

think almost all of my family used this methods. My mother told why she
always use that methods because it always be successful to make her cough
disease can be heal without must go to doctor and must pay much money.
Then, also that plant can be easy to find. My mother can find it in the
traditional market, without must pay much money, just with a little of money
she can get what she needs and it also has many functions besides it can be
cough medicine.

So, that’s why I think that culture in health until now still be the one of
nursing in cultures because the result is no doubt and it really make our body
can be heal although with just a little of money and it also about habit from
generation to generation which in the end became a culture which always do
by the next generation and in the next future generation. And then, from that I
found the real result of benefits from Kaempferia Galanga. It’s not just a story,
but it’s real.
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