AAAOM Conference Unifies and Mobilizes AOM Students And Practitioners

Reported by Elisa M. Behnk, AAAOM-SO VP Communications

“One voice. One medicine. One world.” comes to life in Sacramento.

A level of intense engagement characterized the participation by 400 to 500 students and practitioners attending the AAAOM 2009 International Conference & Exposition in Sacramento, CA, April 23-26, 2009. While the twenty-four formal educational sessions were generally attended to capacity, it was often the events beyond meeting rooms—literally out in the streets of the California State Capitol—that generated the most heat and movement in what could, until recently, legitimately be characterized as a somewhat cool and deficient collective presence for acupuncture and Oriental medicine. The recent convergence of many independent AOM associations, the strategic organization of this geometric growth, and new recognition and respect from top U.S. leaders in science and public policy are all signs of the winds of change for AOM.

The time is now … here we are! If we each ask our next patient, the classmate sitting next to us, and the person who introduced us to acupuncture to write a letter to their representative in Congress, we can help effect pro-acupuncture legislation this year! President Obama requested new legislation by July, 2009, so national healthcare policy is being formed now. With Senator Arlen Specter’s recent jump to the Democratic Party, health reform legislation is even more likely to move forward this year. Further, Senate majority leader Harry Reid reports he will do all he can to send health reform legislation to President Obama this fall.

Following the brief conference recap, see below you to find the tools to help you generate support for universal access to AOM right where you live, study, and practice. Please don’t wait!

Creating Unity in Diversity
The sheer range of topics covered by the 2009 conference sessions attests to the diversity of AOM students and practitioners studying and working today. The conference presented AOM approaches to PTSD, infertility, cancer and soft-tissue injury; neuro-imaging studies of acupuncture treatments; and instruction and demonstration of Korean Saam, Master Tung’s, and scalp acupuncture techniques.

Acupuncture Awareness Day on Thursday, April 23-acupuncture information and treatments on the State Capitol grounds and in legislative chambers throughout the day-was capped off with formal recognition of leaders from diverse disciplines and perspectives coming together as one in the service of universal access to acupuncture and Oriental medicine.

Recognition and honors on inscribed plaques presented to:

That same evening Dr. Choi Seung Hoon, dean of the College of Oriental Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea, spoke on the World Health Organization (WHO) completion of a project to develop a common understanding and nomenclature for acupuncture across cultures and traditions. “If we can do this across many different countries,” he said smiling, “I believe you can do this across the U.S.”

To that very point, on Saturday, April 25, AAAOM recognized Dr. Elizabeth (Liza) Goldblatt, PhD, MHA/PA, chair of the Academic Consortium for Complementary and Alternative Health Care for the Institute of Medicine (IOM), for ensuring broad AOM representation at the National Summit on Integrative Medicine and the Public Health in February 25-27, 2009. The Summit coincided with U.S. Senate hearings on the efficacy and viability of integrative approaches to healthcare and prevention.

Earlier in the day, the AAAOM Student Caucus brought together nearly 60 students from across the country. After brief reports by the student board, a panel of 16 students spoke about their school’s approach to AOM and the benefits and challenges they face. From the oldest school (American College of TCM in San Francisco) to the youngest (National Health Science University in Chicago) and traversing many traditions from TCM to Five Element to Taoist, the panel sparked a great deal of conversation about ways to continue sharing experiences among schools across the country.

Most schools have partnerships and/or externships with an array of healthcare providers in their own communities. Nicolas Barlow represented SAMRA University of Oriental Medicine in Los Angeles and reported that he and his colleagues would like to see the profession set up a “mobile action network” to help inform policy makers and stakeholders about legislation impacting AOM at the state and national levels.

A panel of six licensed practitioners spoke on the diverse ways to practice, including solo start-ups, integrative-health group practices, school affiliation (teaching and clinic supervising). Panel member AAAOM VP William Reddy provided students with a matrix of variables to consider when setting out as a new practitioner.

AAAOM’s annual banquet on Saturday evening featured keynote speaker Michael Taromina, Esq., who serves as AAAOM public member (alternate) and legal counsel, energized the crowd. As he launched into praise for practitioners “putting aside small differences, focusing on what we have in common … and doing it now, because our window of political opportunity will not last long,” attendees at one banquet table spontaneously banded together and challenged others at the event to match or better their opening pledge of $1,000. By the end of the night, $35,430 in member donations effectively breathed new life into AAAOM's national legislative goal of inclusion in the national health care reform effort and support of HR646.

HR646 seeks coverage of qualified acupuncturist services in Medicare Part B and the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. Passage of HR646 would mean that hundreds of thousands of people could have affordable access to acupuncture—a significant and timely reason for AOM students and practitioners to speak as one.

Mobilizing Our Collective Energy
Energized exchanges were going on all around the AAAOM gathering—literally on the sidewalks of the city and in California’s State Capitol hallways. Nearly 150 treatments were provided to people stopping by pavilions on the grounds of the Capitol building during Acupuncture Awareness Day. A steady stream of curious and engaged visitors waited sometimes up to 15 minutes to receive a treatment from one of nearly a dozen California practitioners who were assisted by more than 30 student volunteers from across the country.

At the start of the morning, organized groups of students and practitioners visited members of the legislature and staff in their offices at the Capitol building. These meetings preceded state senate hearings on life-affecting state health service and MediCal budget cuts, so AOM’s focus on prevention and wellness, and the cost-effectiveness of treatment were natural bridges for discussion with key stakeholders.

Later the same day Senate Republican Leader David Cogdill and his staff welcomed licensed acupuncturist Kimberley Benjamin, a recent graduate of Five Branches University in Santa Cruz, California. Ms. Benjamin provided treatments for Legislative Aide Kevin C. Walkow and Executive Assistant Diana Knowles.

Act Now for Affordable Access to Acupuncture
Federal support for acupuncture through passage of HR 646 rests in our hands! The following tools are available to us. Like needles, they are as effective as the hands that deliver them.

Our engagement is necessary, our task is simple, and our deadlines are immediate:

  1. Read the instructions (PDF) and (MS-Word) sample letter.
  2. Handwrite a letter to your own state and U.S. representatives in support of HR 646 by May 15, 2009. You can find who your legislator is by going to www.house.gov and entering your zip code.
  3. Talk about the critical Access-to-Acupuncture movement with your next patient, the classmate sitting next to you, and the person who introduced you to acupuncture. Ask each person you meet to write a letter to his/her congressional representative in support of affordable acupuncture.

To learn more about all advocacy efforts and to help mobilize the grassroots Access-to-Acupuncture effort, go to the Advocacy Now section of the AAAOM web site.