An Eye-Opening Conference!

By Elisa Behnk, AAAOM-SO Vice President of Communications

Attending the AAAOM conference in October opened my eyes to the incredible variety of benefits AAAOM provides to me as a student. My “Top 5,” are:

1. A focus on students! I was amazed that a large portion of the AAAOM membership is comprised of students, largely due to increased efforts over the past year to develop more awareness about AAAOM among acupuncture and TCM schools across the country. At the conference I found that—specifically for students—AAAOM:

2. Relationships. AAAOM brings students and practitioners together in the same forum in a way we could never achieve independently.

In one conference session the practitioner sitting next to me was very helpful in defining and spelling Chinese terms for me. Turns out it was Acupuncture Desk Reference author David J. Kuoch. What a great introduction to two helpful resources! David, by the way, visited the Student Caucus on Saturday and donated to the student raffle a number of copies of his newly published Volume II.

The Student Caucus was itself a tremendous resource to the nearly 120 students attending the conference. Astute leadership insisted that we switch our seating at the catered lunch so that we could meet someone new from another school. Well, it worked! Now National University of Health Sciences is on my radar in a way it could not have been otherwise, and I have new collegial connections in Chicago.

At one of the gatherings, a colleague of mine told me that she met a practitioner from her town looking to expand his practice. She told me that traveling halfway across the country she found easily what she wouldn’t have discovered by staying home—an opportunity to join a practice when she graduates this spring!

3. Access to "the greats" from many different traditions. AAAOM is an open forum for our many varied healing traditions, which ultimately benefits all of our patients.

This year, Judy Worsley from the Worsley Institute, presented an extensive pre-conference session on Five Element Acupuncture theory and practice. The next day, Dr. Josephine Briggs, Director of NIH's National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), revealed how the agency is keenly focused on the question of research in our field. After noting some significant statistics*, she announced that an acupuncturist is being named to the NCCAM board (we’re holding our breath for details!). The following day distinguished Georgetown professor and Washington litigator Sherman Cohn, Esq. traced the history of acupuncture in America from its earliest days through modern practice. His keynote speech at the banquet topped off an already engaging conversation around my table among professionals and students from California, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C. about the joys and challenges of moving to a new town and cultivating a client base.

4. Thinking ahead … setting up a practice. Even though setting up my practice is over a year and a half down the road for me, I’m beginning to realize it is not too early to start thinking as a professional. At the conference I was able to attend sessions focused on practice-building, seminars on various diagnostic and treatment techniques, and I visited exhibitor booths where I picked up “painless needles,” herbal samples, reference tools, and information on practice-management software.

5. Thinking bigger … our role in the national health care discussion. The way I will be able to practice AOM when I graduate is largely a function of the policies and regulations governing health care practices.

AAAOM legal counsel Michael Taromina spoke about the challenges we now face, such as retaining access to herbs and demonstrating AOM safety. He hammered home the imperative to “show up at the table” in Washington, D.C., where health care policy is being made, particularly now, when a new president and his administration are building a platform for health that will soon impact the way we practice.

AAAOM’s Political Action Committee — which has demonstrated great success on the state level — is poised to act nationally and needs our support. I am committing to support the PAC by contributing $10 per month to help establish our collective voice on Capitol Hill. I’m asking you to join me and do the same. It’s easy… Visit the Political Action Fund site to make your monthly contribution and to learn more about how it can ultimately help you transition from student to practicing professional.

So, this is my list of “Top 5” AAAOM benefits. If you attended the conference, I am curious to know what kinds of things spoke to you? What do you know now that you didn’t before? And what would you like to see at AAAOM conferences in the future? feedback form here I look forward to hearing what’s on your mind!

My email address is behnk@mac.com.

*Dr. Briggs also cited research statistics revealing that 3.1 million Americans used acupuncture during 2007, up nearly 50% from the Center’s prior survey in 2002. Acupuncture is the ninth most common complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) modality used by Americans after supplements, meditation, chiropractic and several other modalities.