Theorising the Role of Traditional Healers as Health Education Agents in Rural South West Nigeria: A Constructivist Grounded Theory Study

Traditional healers occupy a central and enduring role in healthcare and health knowledge transmission across rural South West Nigeria, yet their potential as health education agents has been inadequately theorised in the health education literature. This study employed constructivist grounded theory to develop a substantive theory of traditional healers as health education agents in rural South West Nigeria, encompassing communities in Ogun, Ondo, and Ekiti states. The study involved 18 months of fieldwork, including 44 in-depth interviews with traditional healers, community elders, primary healthcare workers, and community members, 6 focused group discussions, and observational fieldwork in traditional healing practices. Theoretical sampling guided data collection until theoretical saturation was achieved. Constant comparative analysis and memo writing were used to generate and refine theoretical categories. A substantive grounded theory emerged, conceptualising traditional healers as Contextual Health Brokers who translate between biomedical and indigenous health knowledge systems, mediate community health behaviour, and provide socially trusted channels for health information. Integration into formal health education systems was identified as possible but required institutional recognition, mutual respect between biomedical and traditional practitioners, and structured collaborative protocols. The study makes a significant theoretical contribution to integrative health education scholarship in Africa. Keywords: traditional healers, health education agents, constructivist grounded theory, South West Nigeria, integrative health