"Few, if any, forces in human affairs are as powerful as shared vision." — Peter Senge
Two major national organizations that support the advancement of the Acupuncture and East-Asian Medicine (Ac/EAM) professions are the National Certification Commission of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, (NCCAOM) and the Academic Collaborative for Integrative Health, (ACIH). I had the pleasure of interviewing both Kory Ward-Cook, PhD, CAE (previous CEO of NCCAOM), and Liza Goldblatt, PhD, MPA/HA, an ACIH founding (and current) board member, about our shared activities and how we can continue to advance the field of the Acupuncture/East Asian Medicine (AcEAM) within the U.S.
ACIH is a 501c3 non-profit organization that represents 18 national organizations and many universities, colleges and programs that represent the five licensed Complementary and Integrative Health professions (acupuncture and East Asian Medicine, chiropractic, naturopathic medicine, massage therapy and direct-entry midwifery) as well as traditional world medicine and emerging professions (such as homeopathy, somatic movement, yoga therapy and Ayurveda) within the context of the national movement towards interprofessional education and collaborative practice (IPE/CP). Since 2004 , ACIH has been building partnerships, educating, and advocating for whole person, team-based, collaborative, patient- centered care that focuses on health and well-being as well as the least invasive treatment of conditions and diseases.
NCCAOM is a 501c6 established in 1982, and is the only national organization that validates entry-level competency in the practice of acupuncture and East Asian medicine through professional certification. NCCAOM certification, or a passing score on the NCCAOM certification examinations, documents competency for licensure as an acupuncturist by 46 states plus the District of Columbia, representing 98 percent of the states that regulate acupuncture. All NCCAOM certification programs are currently accredited by the National Commission for Certification Agencies (NCCA). NCCAOM's mission is to assure the safety and well-being of the public and to advance the professional practice of acupuncture and Oriental medicine by establishing and promoting national evidence-based standards of competence and credentialing.
ACIH and NCCAOM are aligned with a shared national vision of how important it is to educate the public, other health professions, government agencies, and allied organizations about our complementary and integrative disciplines, and in particular their philosophies, level of training, research evidence, scope of practice and expertise in clinical practice.
NCCAOM has been a core member of the ACIH since 2005, and along the way NCCAOM and ACIH have joined forces in multiple key projects that have advanced the AcEAM profession, for example:
Credentialing Licensed Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Professionals for Practice in Healthcare Organizations: An Overview and Guidance for Hospital Administrators, Acupuncturists and Educators (October 2016) Weeks, Goldblatt, Gomes, Majd & Ward-Cook.
This paper offers resources to assist AcEAM educators, students and practitioners interested in working in conventional medicine environments and in collaborative team-based, patient-centered care clinics.
Survey of Licensed Acupuncturists to Gather Information on Competencies for Practice in Hospitals, Integrated Centers and Other Conventional Healthcare Settings (2007) Weeks, Snider, Goldblatt, et al. This survey and interview process was engaged to explore the competencies of AOM practitioners which best support their having an optimal role in patient care in these settings. (Since more and more acupuncture/EAM practitioners are being hired in mainstream/conventional settings, it is time to update this survey.) ACIH's Dr. Goldblatt notes "NCCAOM has been extraordinarily supportive of many of the major ACIH projects and we look forward to the continuation of our collaborative work together in the future."
Competencies for Integrated Practice
The Interprofessional Education Collaborative or IPEC competencies are now required by all conventional/mainstream health profession training programs. It is time that the five licensed complementary and integrative health professions adopt these competencies and that the national certification testing agencies include these competencies. "NCCAOM is embarking on offering new credentials for our NCCAOM Board-Certified Acupuncturists so that they can be better prepared to work with other healthcare practitioners in as an integrated health care team, and acquisition of more IPEC is essential to be successful in those practice settings" stated Dr. Ward-Cook. ACIH's Competencies for Optimal Practice in Integrated Environments includes IPEC's competencies.
Dr. Ward Cook, who recently announced her retirement from NCCAOM (which will occur at the end of 2019 after being at the helm for 15 years), notes that NCCAOM is at an inflection point, "(the) most important thing for NCCAOM, as a certifying organization, is to reassure the public that our NCCAOM Board-Certified Acupuncturists are the best qualified to perform AcEAM services safely and efficaciously as the public are confused (about this) and even their MD often times doesn't know how to find a qualified acupuncturist. It's important for the public to understand how to find a national board-certified acupuncturist, (from) both an efficacy and safety standpoint."
Dr. Ward Cook emphasized that the AcEAM profession would benefit from greater consensus around professional practice standards, such as degrees, credentialing and practice standards in the future, so that one national standard is applied for degrees and licensure, rather than many different state standards. Since various pathways to become an acupuncturist currently exist, with different titles and degrees available to the newly matriculated student, there is a great deal of confusion about which pathway to choose and why a situation which Dr. Ward Cook predicts will require "either an evolution or a revolution" in the future. Dr. Goldblatt agrees that it would be ideal if there were one degree title for the master's and doctoral degree. "(AcEAM is) the only health profession that has so many titles for these degrees and this does confuse the public," stated Dr. Goldblatt.
Please SAVE the DATE for an upcoming ACIH/NCCAOM webinar, Tuesday, October 29, 2019, 10amPT/1pmET, "Evolving Practice Standards for Acupuncturists; An Evolution or Revolution?" This webinar is geared for educators, students and state/national association leaders.
An upcoming ACIH/NCCAOM webinar (Tuesday, October 29, 10am PST) will advise on the evolving practice standards for acupuncturists. To register please visit https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/2048482921485606924.
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