acupuncture degrees

[Guest guest]

> Posted by: " Dr. Avery Jenkins " docaltmed mirapei2004

> Fri Oct 27, 2006 2:01 pm (PDT)

>

> Like it or not, the MD and DC degrees are significantly more extensive

> than those required for acupuncture, in fact, over twice as long.

> Between

> 4500 and 5000 hours are required for MD or DC, which are terminal

> degrees

> comparable to the PhD, compared to the 1900 hours necessary for the

> master's level acupuncture degrees.

 

I strongly disagree with this statement.

I don't know of any master's degree program in the US that is only

1900 hours. The accreditation commission requires significantly more

than that to accredit a school. Most programs are approximately 3000

hours (or more), taking 3 to 4 years of rigorous full time graduate

study to complete. Internships are strictly supervised.

Comprehensive national board exams are long, expensive and

difficult. Most students carry huge student loan debt upon

completion. I don't know of any other master's level degree that

takes this much time, money or effort to complete. To belittle the

effort that most of us on this list have put toward our professional

degree is, needless to say, somewhat insulting.

 

300 hours of acupuncture training is not enough to make anyone

proficient in Asian medicine, just as 300 hours of chiropractic

training, or western medical training will not make us proficient to

'do chiropractic' or to 'do western medicine'. I know a number of

DCs who have gone through the entire TCM masters program and they

would whole-heartedly agree.

 

-judy

--

Judy Lemieux, M.S., L.Ac.

In Denver & Centennial, Colorado

(303) 964-1996

http://www.QingTingAcupuncture.com

 

Acupuncture Association of Colorado

President

http://www.acucol.com

[Guest guest]

I would like to add my opinion which I feel is pretty much unbiased

regarding this issue since I have been trained in both professions.

 

I graduated from Los Angeles College of Chiropractic in 1990. A few

years after this I started my education at SAMRA University of

Oriental Medicine in Los Angeles and graduated in 2000.

 

I always hear the same issue with chiro's regarding the hours that

were required to graduate. For some reason they feel the increased

hours of chiro education makes them qualified to do acupuncture.

 

Having degrees in both professions, I can tell you this is nonsense,

the educational process between both professions are like comparing

oranges and apples.

 

To be honest, chiropractic college was more difficult due to all the

western medicine courses, although the majority of the education

that was learned would soon be forgotten and was not education that

you would necessarily use in practice, except the major information

that was necessary to make a proper diagnosis, etc.

 

I found my education at SAMRA was a much more difficult and

different experience, lots of memorization and different strategies

for treating patients which in itself is complicated if one wants to

do a good job.

 

As most of you know that everything that you learn in

acupuncture/TCM school you can use in practice which seperates the 2

professions and after graduating most of us realize how much more

there is to learn to be 100 percent competent due to the different

areas of specialities.

 

I have spoken with several MD's and DC's regarding their education

thru the UCLA program or John Amaro's program and its pretty sad,

yes they do get defensive especially when I ask them basic questions

such as which points are contraindicated in pregnancy and they

cannot tell you the majority of the points, or which points are more

relevant for a frontal headache, temporal headache, occipital

headache, etc. and they tell you LI-4 is the main point or they are

not sure what to say. This in itself will determine the

effectiveness of the treatment and clincal outcome.

 

This is what seperates the professionals doing acupuncture and the

clinical results that one achieve. As most of you are aware and from

what I have seen, the clinical results vary greatly.

 

This is like dismissing spinal manipulation/adjustment from being

non-effective when being done by an acupuncturist, physical

therapist, or MD because the clinical results were not that

effective.

 

I also know have several DC's that are mixers who feel that

acupuncture is not in their scope of practice because of the

demanding education and clinical training it takes to achive this.

 

The chiro's are the first to yell and scream when another profession

is trying to incorporate spinal manipulation without the adequate

training.

 

Both professions need to respect the other's training and education

and not feel that because one has more hours in education this

qualifies them to do the acupuncture.

 

Just ask any other chiro what his opinion is who has also gone thru

both educational programs, I can tell you their opinion will be

pretty much as I have expressed.

 

Brian N. Hardy

Doctor of Chiropractic

Licensed Acupuncturist

Certified Clinical Nutritionist

Master of Science in Oriental Medicine

Diplomate of the American Clinical Board of Nutrition

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chinese Medicine , acudoc11

wrote:

>

>

> Action speaks louder than empty rhetoric.

>

> It is now illegal in Florida for a DC or an MD to call themselves

> acupuncturist (medical acupuncturist) or anything similar. The DCs

are prohibited from

> calling themselves Certified Acupuncturists. Even those who

banter around the

> week-end-warrior 100 hr board certifications are now being

cautioned by the

> Department of Health.

>

> A DC who has a certification is only allowed to say that they USE

> acupuncture and they had better make sure they inform the public

in their

> advertisements that they have NO license in acupuncture unless of

course they completed

> the full course of study and maintain a dual licensure. In lieu of

the dual

> licensure (if they mention acupuncture in their ads) the DC must

state that they

> are ONLY a Chiropractor.

>

> The community here in Florida is tired of this kind of mis-

advertising and

> defrauding of the public. The state has finally gotten serious

about it.

> Violate it and the DC or the MD will be hauled before their

respective boards under

> the Dept of Health for disciplinary action coupled with stiff

fines and

> substantial investigative fees.

>

> What DCs administer with the 100 hrs should be appropriately

called

> Chiro-Puncture whatever that might be. And what the MDs do

without any training

> should be called Medi-Puncture....but definitely neither are

acupuncture.

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