A student stands over a patient, needle poised. They have a “perfect” prescription: a textbook combination of points harvested from a lecture slide on chronic lower back pain. But as the needle meets the skin, the student hesitates - the symptom of a quiet habit that has taken hold of our profession. We routinely say we “prescribe” points. It sounds efficient. It echoes the authority of biomedical culture and fits neatly into the insurance field. But vocabulary is never neutral; repeated long enough, it dictates behavior.
Jamie L. Davis, EAMP
Jamie L. Davis is a licensed Acupuncturist and owns a natural health center in Burien, Washington. She uses her previous training in medical anthropology to help educate her patients, and her focus is on creating community and whole family wellness. She can be reached at info@burienhealth.com.