America's healthcare system in the twenty-first century faces a variety of pressures and challenges, not the least of which is that posed by the increasingly multicultural nature of American society itself. Large numbers among the Hmong, immigrants from the landlocked Asian nation of Laos, continue to prefer their own ancient medical traditions. That these Hmong Americans should continue to adhere to a tradition of folk medicine, rather than embrace the modern healthcare system of America, poses questions that must be answered. This book takes up the task of examining Hmong American concepts of health, illness and healing, and looks at the Hmong American experience with conventional medicine. In so doing, it identifies factors that either obstruct or enable healthcare delivery to the Hmong, specifically a target sample of Hmong Americans resident in Colorado. Drawing upon scientific methods of data collection, the research reveals attitudes currently held by a group of American citizens toward health and medicine which run the gamut from the very modern to those which have prevailed in the highlands of Southeast Asia for centuries.

Dia Cha (1962? - ) is currently (2006) Associate Professor of Anthropology and Ethnic Studies at St. Cloud State University, in St. Cloud, Minnesota, where she teaches courses in cultural anthropology, ethnic studies, Southeast Asian communities, Asian American studies, and Hmong studies. A Hmong American and a prolific author, she has written widely-acclaimed books for children and adults, and is considered one of the world's leading authorities on Hmong cultural traditions and folkways, traveling widely to offer a variety of presentations on these and related topics.