Degrees and titles (was Tong's points…. )

[Guest guest]

Wednesday, May 17, 2006 8:22 AM, wrote:

>Miriam [Lee] had an OMD from SF collage of acupuncture

 

At 09:20 AM 5/17/2006, Donald Snow responded:

>That was a 2 year degree and was unaccredited. It is supposedly

illegal to use that title. The OMD was less education than today's

California Master's student presently recieves. It was approved CA

though. But if one tried to use it in, sat New York, they would be jailed.

 

It was a degree (2 years?) beyond the basic L.Ac entry-level

requirements; maybe about equivalent to the current 3000 hour Masters

requirement (in California). It was, and is (at least as per Calif.

Acupuncture Board (CAB) meetings about 3 years ago that I attended)

legal, in California, to use the OMD title, if one earned it from a

school " approved " (by Calif. State AB and BPPVS (Bureau of Private

Post-secondary Schools)) to grant it, and during that time period in

the mid-late 1980's when it's granting was approved. Maybe it was

around the time of the new Master-level entry requirement, ca.

1988-90, that it was phased-out. Use of " OMD " otherwise (as, for

instance, by some immigrant L.Ac's from the PRC) constitutes

" unprofessional conduct " , potentially subject to " enforcement, "

according to CAB regulations. The regulations also permit use of " Dr "

only by someone with an (indigenous or US Dept of Education (DOE)

cross-accredited) MD, or doctorate-level and nationally accredited

degree in AOM or a closely related (bio/medical) field.

..

and, at 01:40 PM 5/17/2006, " " alonmarcus wrote:

>The OMD is as useless and new DAOM, neither one is regionally

accredited and outside our little world is not recognized as anything

more than a paper mill. The OMD degree was what the available degree

at that time. I think the world was a little different than most of

the new graduates understand. My DOM is the same type of useless

paper so i am not trying to just dis others.

 

ACAOM accreditation, as I understand it, means national, i.e. under

the aegis of the US Dept of Education (DOE). Also, as I understand

it, regional accreditation is also just a level beneath DOE

accreditation, so national should be just as good. They ( " genuine "

OMD and ACAOM accredited DAOM, et al titles) do, as above, entitle

one, at least, to represent oneself by the title Dr./doctor. Some

" DOM " s, I understand, e.g. New Mexico's, don't pass the regulatory

test here in Calif., which, I believe, hinges on an accreditation

lineage traceable to the DOE. " American Global University " advertises

" international accreditation " , which is apparently means a mutual

admiration society of various off-shore degree mills. And there

is/was one in New Orleans, hopefully washed away now. (A couple of

years ago I was " Dean " at a Calif. AOM school, and reviewed

applications from largely immigrant candidates. Got to know more than

I wanted to about " international accreditations " and other such scams.)

 

Practically speaking, when someone, e.g. patients or colleagues,

calls one of us (L.Ac's) " doctor " , that's harmless and non-liable (as

acknowledged, at least informally, by the CAB). " Unprofessional

conduct " is representing oneself as so officially, e.g. on business

cards, letterhead, or in advertisements. For instance, those who

advertise, in newspapers, CEU flyers, etc., as Dr/doctor by virtue of

the " PhD " from American Global University (which one runs across all

too often) are in jeapardy.

 

By the Way, " Dr Wei-Chieh Young's Main Page "

(http://www.drweichiehyoung.com/) claims:

" Ph.D. in Oriental Medicine from Samra University of

Oriental Medicine "

Does anyone know what this refers to? Samra [LA] doesn't list a Ph.D

in its current program (on its website). Was this an OMD? How does

Dr. Young document this?

 

And, the other day, Donald Snow <don83407 wrote:

>> Yes! My training is directly under Dr. Young who is the footstep

and primary disciple of Master Dong. He also was one who trained

Miriam in Taiwan (who he says only trained for 3 days before writing her book.

 

There must be more to this story. Did she learn from others too? Her

book might not be of academic caliber, and she perhaps less than " the

authority " on D/Tong technique, but her book has a fair amount of substance.