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For many of the veterans attending the 2015 Los Angeles Veteran and Families Stand Down last December, the prospect of having 40-gauge needles inserted into their ears was more intimidating than any challenge they had faced in, or out of, the military. For many more, however, the Emperor’s College event…

Middle Way Acupuncture Institute’s Veterans’ and Community Clinic began in 2008 as a weekly smoking cessation clinic and was expanded to a general purpose clinic the following year in order to serve a wider patient base. The Community Clinic is free and open to everyone, and is dedicated in honor…

You may have received some trigger point training as part of your acupuncture schooling, or at least have purchased charts with referral patterns and books on trigger points. But did you learn a systematic approach to identifying likely culprits and resolving perpetuating factors – the things that cause and keep…

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Content marketing is about building relationships, whether that is through updates on social media, offers on your website, blog posts, email campaigns, or even printed material. Now days a business needs to make a human connection. Many health practitioners are reluctant to fully dive into content marketing for fear of…

One of the first or last questions a potential patient often asks is: “Do you take insurance?” An ill-informed or optimistic, “yes” can result in delayed or non-payment. Instead, just say: “Let me check if you are eligible first.”

One of the most common clinical presentations is insomnia. Next to digestive disorders, sleep disorders are one of the most common complaints the clinician will encounter in daily practice. Despite its common occurrence, I am consistently perplexed at TCM practitioners who opt to use generic herbal “sleep formulas” in lieu…

Traditional Chinese medicine is a coherent medical system with several unique characteristics: it originated almost 3,000 years ago; in its area of origin, it has been practiced without interruption since its inception. Although there is some affinity between traditional Chinese medicine, which is based on ancient Chinese metaphysics, and classic…

The acupuncture points known as Window of the Sky are a modern creation. There is no reference in Chinese medical texts for an acupuncture point category called Window of the Sky. The history of this category of points is very interesting. Chapter 21 of the Ling Shu, “Cold and Hot…

Kudos to the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) for creating a code of ethics for the nationwide profession and for deciding to make courses in ethics a requirement for certification renewal. Yes, starting in 2016, every NCCAOM Diplomate will have to do at least two hours…

My study of qi began more than 20 years ago — long before my study of TCM, points or pathways. It all started with an awareness in my hands and physical manifestations in the way of blockages while working on clients. The reason I decided to to become an acupuncturist…

Challenges with musculoskeletal health are of tremendous concern for many people today. The fact that so many people seek qualified acupuncturists is supported by research that shows clinically relevant changes in musculoskeletal health among patients undergoing acupuncture treatment. Along with acupuncture, however, there is often a forgotten nutritional component that…

Interprofessionalism in education and in practice is a growing trend across health care in the United States. The idea that team-based care and collaborative practice can improve health care has been around more than 50 years. Interest in interprofessionalism dropped off for several years and was then renewed after a…

Q: I am trying to locate a code for cupping and moxibustion, and have had various fellow acupuncturists indicate that they bill using the existing codes for heat, 97010 hot packs or 97026 infra-red for moxa and 97016 vasopneumatic device for cupping. Would these be appropriate and correct?

Gung Hay Fat Choi. Welcome to the year of the Monkey. There will be fireworks for both January and February this year. What great celebrations. As the fireworks began in other countries on January 1st and as the ball dropped in New York city and as the sky lit up…

As the acupuncture and Oriental medicine (AOM) profession struggles to define the role of “integrative” medicine within their practices their schools and organizations, students, faculty, alumni and administrators at schools wrestle with discussions of how much, where, how, and what to “integrate.” The expansion of integrative health and wellness offerings…

An element of healthcare training often overlooked is the residual benefit to communities served by Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (AOM) schools nationwide. AOM schools across the country are committed not only to educating exceptional practitioners, but also to working in partnership with local organizations to serve the evolving healthcare needs…