The Community Acupuncture Network: Grass Roots Needling Therapy The marriage of working class politics and acupuncture might on the face of it seem an unlikely match. After all, working class politics and grass roots organization conjures images of class struggle, marching in the streets and fighting for one or another form of liberation. Images of [...]
The healthcare reform vote is a victory for progressives but it is not the start of a radically changed healthcare system free of profit-driven stakeholders. One of the problems with the current system will become clear within a few years. I believe the sudden increase in the number of insured persons will demonstrate the severe [...]
Venice Family Clinic (VFC) is a long-standing community clinic with two locations in the Santa Monica and Venice neighborhoods of Los Angeles, California. Many people are surprised to learn that VFC serves a diverse and poor population of Westside adults, women and children. After all, the Westside is far better known for movie people and [...]
At the risk of reinforcing the “us” versus “them” stereotype (i.e., Eastern versus Western medicine) I describe my recent interaction with two primary care physicians who support acupuncture in principle and action. Despite this, they were flummoxed with a proposal I made to them that LAcs (Licensed Acupuncturists) should work as primary care providers (PCPs) [...]
I attended the most recent meeting of the California Acupuncture Board (June 20 2008) where a new Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (AOM) college received temporary approval despite the college President’s statement that his occupational goal for his students was “training missionaries”. The school is owned by a religious organization that only provides classes in the [...]
I am always surprised when I encounter professionals unfamiliar with how their profession is governed. The common arrangement is to establish three organizations that represent the profession’s principal internal stakeholders: the association of colleges (CCAOM), the association of licensed professionals (AAAOM), and the accreditation body (ACAOM). The public interest is represented by the state (or [...]
Our manuscript titled Divining Integrative Medicine (authors S Stumpf, S Shapiro and M Hardy) describes issues that must be weighed in finding a suitable and widely acceptable definition for integrative medicine. The mansucript was accepted recently by Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine and will be published shortly. The journal is available online at no cost [...]
Integrative medicine must be bilateral in spirit and practice. Without having completed the standard course of training a physician is no more qualified to teach Traditional Chinese Medicine than an acupuncturist is qualified to teach biomedical science. The best current example of integrative medicine is a medical practice that employs qualified practitioners from each discipline [...]