“Healing is having faith in Allah, the healer, and the medicine": An exploratory qualitative study of Islamic-based healing practices in Northern Ghana

Abstract

Faith-based healing practices are becoming widespread in Ghana. Charismatic churches, traditional healers, and Islamic faith healers provide healthcare services for multitudes nationwide. However, Islamic faith-based healers' medical perspectives and healing practices are less known. This descriptive exploratory qualitative study explores Islamic-based healing practices among the Dagomba and how Dagbon culture influences Islamic-based healing. Data were collected from six Islamic-based healers through participant observations and in-depth individual interviews using a semi-structured interview guide. Thematic analysis was employed, and results are reported narratively. The study discovered that Islamic-based healing is important in Dagbon, with healers providing healing services for diverse illnesses. Practitioners of Islamic-based healing among the Dagomba observe that having faith in Allah and trust in His healing powers is the foundation of health. Islamic principles of faith and the Dagomba worldviews of health and illness affect these healers’ medical knowledge and healing practices. The study found that rituals and sacrifices are significant healing practices with unique gendered perspectives. Spirituality is perceived as both an illness-causal factor and a healing tool. We invite further research to identify the prospects, constraints, and therapeutic possibilities Islamic medicine and healing hold for Ghana’s integrative medical system_._