Prescriptions for Virtuosity: The Postcolonial Struggle of Chinese Medicine

Chinese medicine has faced threats from modern biomedicine, leading to changes in its clinical practice. Doctors have responded by emphasizing the unique "Chinese" characteristics of their practice and producing an ontological divide between the two medical systems. They have also found points of convergence to facilitate the blending of the two medical practices, producing innovative solutions to difficult clinical problems. Karchmer's book explores how the postcolonial condition can generate not only domination but hybridity, and how the clinical methodology of "pattern discrimination and treatment determination" can lead to an impoverished form of medicine in the hands of virtuoso physicians.

Format: Hardback
Length: 272 pages
Publication date: 05 August 2022
Publisher: Fordham University Press

The assumption of Chinese medicine as a timeless healing tradition faces a significant challenge in the face of modern biomedicine. This encounter has led to a series of radical changes that have put the existence of Chinese medicine at stake. In response to this threat, Doctors of Chinese medicine have developed innovative strategies to maintain their clinical practice's relevance in contemporary Chinese society.

Prescriptions for Virtuosity, a comprehensive ethnographic and historical study, delves into the responses of these doctors to the global dominance of biomedicine. The book documents the strategies employed by Chinese medicine doctors to navigate the complex power dynamics that arise in the postcolonial context.

Doctors of Chinese medicine have taken two seemingly contradictory paths in their response to the dominance of biomedicine. On the one hand, they have emphasized the unique "Chinese" characteristics of their practice, positioning them as distinct from the perceived strengths of biomedicine. This has resulted in an ontological divide between the two medical systems, inadvertently marginalizing Chinese medicine. It has made it seem appropriate for clinical use only when biomedical solutions are lacking.

On the other hand, doctors have sought points of convergence to facilitate the blending of the two medical practices. Through this approach, they have been able to produce innovative solutions to challenging clinical problems. Prescriptions for Virtuosity examines how the postcolonial condition can generate not only domination but also hybridity. The book demonstrates, for instance, how the clinical methodology of "pattern discrimination and treatment determination" (bianzheng lunzhi), celebrated as the quintessential characteristic of Chinese medicine, is a twentieth-century invention. When subjected to the institutional standardizations of hospital practice, bianzheng lunzhi can lead to an impoverished form of medicine. However, in the hands of virtuoso physicians, it becomes a dynamic tool for navigating between biomedicine and traditional Chinese medicine.

Through their innovative strategies, Doctors of Chinese medicine have demonstrated their ability to adapt and thrive in the face of changing medical landscapes. They have preserved the essence of their clinical practice while embracing the benefits of modern biomedicine. Prescriptions for Virtuosity offers valuable insights into the complex dynamics between traditional medicine and modern biomedicine, shedding light on the ways in which doctors can navigate the challenges of the postcolonial world and maintain the relevance of their clinical practice.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780823299843