Summary: This doctor does not treat a specific patient; he addresses a public, and his public is not a clinical case but a market. He sells fear and hope, uses religious texts and scientific terms, and turns illness from human suffering into content for fast consumption.

In the virtual clinic that never closes its doors, a doctor sits in front of the camera as if facing a patient, but in reality he addresses millions. No stethoscope in his hands, only a smartphone; no examination table, only well-studied lighting and an elegant background; no signed prescription, only a short, decisive, sensational phrase that summarizes the complex human body in a single shareable sentence.

This doctor does not treat a specific patient; he addresses a public, and his public is not a clinical case but a market—a market where he sells fear as well as hope, employs religious texts as well as scientific jargon, and turns illness from human suffering into quickly consumable content.

For decades, medical authority was built in the corridors of universities and hospitals, through years of training, specialization, and rigorous scientific review. Today, however, this authority is sometimes built inside a recording studio, with 30 seconds of video and an algorithm that does not distinguish between truth and falsehood, but rewards those who are watched more, regardless of what is believed less.

Thus was born the model of the 'populist doctor,' that hybrid creature between medicine and stardom, between knowledge and marketing, between the mission of healing and the profit industry. He wears the white coat as a dramatic costume more than a symbol of professional responsibility, and invokes the Quran and Hadith not for a deeper understanding of the body, but to legitimize a commercial potion.

He capitalizes on people's anxiety about weight loss, their obsession with eternal youth, and their fear of mysterious toxins allegedly lurking in their bodies, to sell them the solution in a bottle, a training course, a mobile app, or an expensive cosmetic clinic.

"Independent Arabia" discusses this phenomenon in several Arab countries through this joint investigation, and asks: Who is this doctor? How did he build his fame? Which topics does he invest in most? And is there any oversight to hold him accountable?

The desire for quick fixes is the main driver behind people believing these digital myths (Independent Arabia).

But the deeper question we try to answer is not only 'Who is the populist doctor?' but 'Why did people believe him?' The phenomenon cannot be understood from one side; it is the result of declining trust in official health institutions, accumulating patient disappointments with an exhausting, expensive, and slow medical system, in exchange for a quick, warm promise close to people's everyday language, even if that promise is false.

Rouani medicine in Tunisia: Increasing demand despite the ban

Populist medicine in Tunisia is known as 'Rouani' medicine, or 'Arabic medicine,' that is, medicine that does not follow sound scientific logic. As in other Arab societies, populist medicine is a cultural and historical legacy, spreading especially in rural areas and popular neighborhoods in cities. The development of modern technology and social media has helped introduce the actors in this field.

This type of medicine mixes herbs, honey, olive oil, Quran recitation, prophetic hadiths, Sufi songs, and performing some prayers during or before the treatment process. Some practitioners also rely on magic and sorcery. 'Rouani' medicine targets people who have exhausted all scientific medical solutions, turning to this type of treatment as a last resort hoping to save their lives.

Herbs and Sand Burial

Populist medicine in Tunisia is divided into several categories, including herbal remedies such as using mint for indigestion and fenugreek for fever, or using cupping therapy, an ancient medical technique that removes accumulated 'bad blood' from the body to treat fatigue and back pain.

Despite the spread of cupping therapy shops in various regions of the country, the Ministry of Health does not provide academic training nor does it recognize this specialty.

Also widespread in southern Tunisia is the phenomenon of 'radm' or sand burial to treat cold-related diseases and joint pain. It is a populist heritage that southerners preserve to this day and market as a medical tourism product. There are also spiritual treatments of a religious nature, such as 'ruqya' to expel evil spirits or break spells, or organizing Sufi gatherings like 'hadra' at saints' tombs and lodges.

Qaddum oil for asthma treatment

Herbal medicine remains a subject of debate in Tunisia, between a segment represented by specialists in herbal medicine—a scientific training in nutrition and slimming—and populist Rouani medicine represented by those who prepare potions and extracts from plants and offer them as treatments for various diseases. Hajj Muhammad is one of those who have taken up preparing concoctions and selling herbs in the Balat market in the capital, specializing in selling natural herbs and preparing extracts from medicinal plants. He says, 'Every natural plant has benefits, such as the plant "teftit," used for extracting toxins, or dandelion or wild chicory, which treat liver diseases, and "dharw," from which qaddum oil is extracted to treat asthma and stomach ailments.'

Strange narratives and several feats are told about Rouani medicine in Tunisia (Independent Arabia).

Hajj Muhammad believes that 'herbs do not harm because they are natural,' calling for respecting the doses during treatment. He indicates that he prepares several medications for psoriasis, jaundice, and hemorrhoids, calling them 'effective medicines,' noting that 'the majority of Tunisians seek treatment for fertility and sexual weakness.'

Feats and Achievements

Between illusion and truth, strange narratives and several feats are told about Rouani medicine in Tunisia. Some who have exhausted all hope of recovery mention that the spiritual healer succeeded in saving their lives. Jalel is one of those who treated with a spiritual specialist for six months, and after several sessions and various natural remedies mixed with pure natural honey, he claims he was completely cured of insomnia and psychological distress, after facing a severe financial crisis that led to the bankruptcy of his company.

He says, 'I was treated in a private medical center, then went to the neurology hospital in the capital, where I stayed for two weeks without result. I found my salvation in a spiritual doctor who succeeded in getting me out of my crisis, and today I am gradually recovering my health.' Jalel's case resembles many Tunisians who frequent spiritual healers and populist medicine shops after becoming tired of taking medication and staying in hospitals.

Communication crisis with patients

Cultural anthropology researcher Al-Amin Bouazizi believes that 'Rouani medicine relies entirely on communication, and the practitioner in this field is very adept at the art of social communication and has a great ability to gain the patient's trust,'

adding that 'the rate of demand for this type of treatment reveals the crisis of modern medicine, which has begun to treat patients coldly, while the patient needs human communication due to the pressures and psychological pain he suffers.'

The anthropology expert continues that despite its development, 'science has not succeeded in providing a kind of reassurance and psychological safety for humans, so people go looking for safety with spiritual healers and sorcerers.' Bouazizi concludes that 'social media has given practitioners of Rouani medicine a great margin to communicate and interact with their clients, and has opened a window to the outside world for them.'