Native Hawaiian healing to treat substance misuse: history through the looking glass

Cultural interventions that reflect the history and traditions of Native Hawaiians in therapeutic settings are not a mainstay of standard addiction treatment. In an attempt to address the disproportionately high rates of substance use with comparably low rates of voluntary treatment participation am...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of social work practice in the addictions 2021-07, Vol.21 (3), p.207-234
Main Authors: Williams, Izaak L., Rezentes, William C., Ehia, Anapela W., Makini, George K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Addiction
alcohol
awa
cultural practices
culturally responsive
culture
drug abuse
Hawaiian
healing
indigenous
kava
substance abuse
tradition
treatment
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Summary:Cultural interventions that reflect the history and traditions of Native Hawaiians in therapeutic settings are not a mainstay of standard addiction treatment. In an attempt to address the disproportionately high rates of substance use with comparably low rates of voluntary treatment participation among the Native Hawaiian population, the first Native Hawaiian culturally informed treatment program emerged in the early 1980s to utilize various types of indigenous methods intended to improve treatment response and expected clinical outcomes. This article explores the historical basis and cultural precedence for the contemporary use of Native Hawaiian cultural practices in drug treatment facilities. The history of indigenous healing traditions and the Kingdom of Hawai'i's government policy interventions between 1810, when Kamehameha unified the Hawaiian islands under his rule, and 1893, when the U.S. government backed the illegal overthrow of Queen Lili'uokalani's constitutional monarchy, are considered in addressing substance misuse.
ISSN:1533-256X
1533-2578
DOI:10.1080/1533256X.2021.1933844