From Evidence to Equity: Reclaiming Knowledge for Indigenous Health

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Ms. María Beatriz Maruyama Ikeda, a Peruvian medical student born on September 13, 2004, in Lima, Peru. She is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the topic, nor The European Sting’s one.

The Big Contradiction

It is estimated that 476 million people belong to Indigenous communities across 90 countries. Even though they hold a significant presence, healthcare systems consistently fail to include these communities in healthcare systems. This is not a matter of infrastructure or funding, but is deeply embedded in how global health knowledge is produced and applied.

The Map of Medicine Is Drawn Elsewhere

When we think about global health knowledge, we usually imagine massive research initiatives. Most of this evidence is generated in urban and institutional settings, leaving Indigenous and rural communities out of the data. As a result, they are excluded from diagnosis and clinical guidelines, funding priorities, and policy design. 

¿Who Holds the Pen in Global Health? Studied, Measured, but Rarely Invited.

Universities, organizations, institutions, and funding bodies are in charge of determining research agendas, considering which questions are asked, but also who participates in answering them. Indigenous communities are often not taken into account as partners in knowledge creation, leaving experiences, cultural knowledge (traditional practices), and understandings of health and local systems of care both underrepresented and ignored.

Integrative medicine angle

Some traditional medicine is already used and trusted in many communities, but excluded from research. Integration in this matter does not mean replacing science but actually understanding these practices to provide safer, culturally aligned, and more effective healthcare. As an example, integrating traditional birth attendants for culturally safe birth is a practice that has proved effective in Peru. However, in some contexts, many governments have failed to include midwives, herbalists, and community healers, many being the most trusted forms of care in Indigenous communities. 

Lost in Translation

This holds deep consequences as health models and interventions that do not consider indigenous peoples’ geography, worldviews, cultures, traditions, and knowledge systems often tend to underperform when applied in Indigenous communities. Health information is delivered in unfamiliar languages or explained in ways that are difficult to interpret or trust or fails to resonate with their culture. Over time, communities become disconnected, which leads to mistrust of health systems and fuels fear, disinterest, and underutilization of services, further widening health inequalities. 

Rewriting the Rules of Knowledge

“Decolonizing” global health is not about rejecting science or aesthetizising tradition; it is about breaking outside the box of what is considered “valid” knowledge. It requires an approach that recognizes communities and values local perspectives as important to health approaches, research, and decision-making, advancing culturally sensitive and trustworthy healthcare systems. 

Disrupting the System from Within

Young professionals and students have the mission of challenging conventional and non-inclusive research practices, promoting equitable partnerships and creating alliances between Indigenous communities and healthcare and research institutions, building policies, and advocating for equity. By doing so, they will become agents of change in redesigning health systems by helping Indigenous communities Reclaim the Knowledge, Reclaim their Livelihoods, their health, and their futures. 

About the author

María Beatriz Maruyama Ikeda is a Peruvian medical student born on September 13, 2004, in Lima, Peru. She began her medical studies in 2022 at Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas, where she´s entering her fifth year. In 2025, she began her Journey in IFMSA, where she joined SCORP, expanding her knowledge and empathy towards vulnerable communities in Peru, where she currently serves as Local Officer for Human Rights and Peace. She remains committed to promoting health equity, human rights education, and advocating for vulnerable populations worldwide as she pursues her medical degree.