Seeking Members for the Bylaws Subcommittee on Asian Representation

Dear AAAOM Members and Colleagues:

You've been hearing a lot lately about our efforts to include acupuncture and Oriental medicine in the nation's health care reform agenda and about our success in meeting with national and state legislators to educate them about the benefits of AOM. Now I will tell you about some other exciting work we've been doing to strengthen the AAAOM and solidify our presence as the national association for AOM professionals.

As many of you know, the new AAAOM was formed almost three years ago by bringing together the two existing acupuncture professional associations—the AAOM and the Alliance. It was a lot of hard work and dedication to meld the activities, philosophies, and personalities of the two groups, but I'm happy to say that we succeeded in creating a unified organization. This has been the best thing for the profession and has enabled us to speak with one strong voice.

We never want to go back to the divisiveness that existed in the past. To make sure that we have a solid foundation that will carry us well into the future, earlier this year we began to completely overhaul the AAAOM bylaws. Under the excellent leadership of former board member Corinne Axelrod, MPH, LAc, DiplAc, the Bylaws Committee has been working diligently to write bylaws that will help us grow into a larger and more effective association. I would like to thank Corinne and her committee, including Valerie Hobbs, Michael Jabbour, Bill Mosca, Michael McGuffin, and Phranque Wright for the work they have done so far to create an organizational structure that values simplicity, participation, and transparency.

One of the areas that they have spent considerable time exploring is how the bylaws can enhance the representation and participation of the various Asian communities in the policy-making activities of the Association. To better understand the issues and develop recommendations, they decided to form a Bylaws Subcommittee on Asian Representation. The subcommittee will be chaired by Valerie Hobbs, MSOM, DiplOM, LAc, and Grant Zhang, PhD, OMD, Dipl AC, CH, LAc.

The Subcommittee's goal is to make recommendations to the AAAOM Bylaws Committee regarding Asian representation in the policy-making operations of the Association. They plan on having two conference calls a month beginning in December and will finalize their recommendations by March of 2010.

If you are an Asian or Asian-American AAAOM member and have some interest or experience with professional associations and board governance, or if you have any suggestions to increase the participation of Asian communities in the AAAOM, the subcommittee would like to hear from you. Please complete the this interactive form providing your contact information. Additionally, please submit information on your background, why you would like to be on the subcommittee, and any experience you have working towards consensus with colleagues of different cultural backgrounds. We are seeking to form a group that will represent both the cultural and geographical diversity of Asian practitioners of AOM in the U.S. Nominations will be accepted through November 20, 2009.

To truly represent all practitioners of AOM in the United States, we must build into our corporate structure the means to assure and preserve our diversity. This is only the first step, but it's one of the most important steps we can take to build our future together. Please email us today if you can help. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Deborah Lincoln RN, MSN, RAc, NCCAOM
President, AAAOM