October 24th has been dedicated as Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (AOM) Day by the National Certification Commission of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM). AOM Day is part of an effort to increase public awareness of the progress, promise and benefits of acupuncture and Oriental medicine.
American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine (ACTCM), one of the first Traditional Chinese Medicine colleges established in the U.S., is proud to support Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Day by inviting the public to experience the benefits of Chinese medicine first hand. ACTCM’s Community Clinic is proud to offer discounted appointments for low income patients, students and senior citizens.
The Community Ear Clinic, currently held four days per week, is offering auricular (ear) acupuncture appointments to the public on a donation-basis. In addition to clinical services, the college is encouraging the public to learn more about Chinese Medicine by enrolling in one of its several 8-week classes on Chinese Medicine, or by visiting the college’s extensive Chinese Herbal Garden.
ACTCM was founded in 1980 and began offering its Masters of Science in Traditional Chinese Medicine degree and Community Clinic in 1981. The Community Clinic provides low-cost Traditional Chinese Medicine health care to the people of San Francisco and the greater Bay Area. Student interns in the Community Clinic, under the supervision of licensed practitioners, gain practical experience in the application of acupuncture and traditional Chinese herbal remedies for the treatment of various conditions and diseases. ACTCM’s on-site clinics provide affordable holistic care to approximately 17,000 individuals each year. In addition, ACTCM interns participate in multiple off-campus externship sites and log hundreds of hours of community service annually.
Practiced for more than 3,000 years, acupuncture and Oriental medicine are a comprehensive internal medical system that can treat various types of health conditions and problems such as pain, arthritis, asthma, digestive and urinary disorders, insomnia, PMS, depression, addictions and more. Acupuncture and Oriental medicine are practiced world-wide, especially in Asia and many parts of Europe. A 2002 survey by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine found that approximately one in ten adults had received acupuncture at least one time, and 60% said they would readily consider acupuncture as a potential treatment option.
Acupuncture has been cited by the World Health Organization (WHO) to treat over forty-three conditions. The 1997 National Institutes of Health (NIH) Consensus Conference on Acupuncture stated, “The data in support of acupuncture are as strong as those for many accepted Western medical therapies. One of the advantages of acupuncture is that the incidence of adverse effects is substantially lower than that of many drugs or other medial procedures used for the same conditions.”
For more information on Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine Day, ACTCM’s Community Clinic, or the college’s Introductory Classes and academic programs, please call (415) 282-7600.
Click here to view upcoming ACTCM events.
About American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine
American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine (ACTCM) has provided affordable, quality health care to the public and trained professionals in acupuncture, massage and Chinese medicine since 1980. In addition to its graduate curriculum, ACTCM offers continuing education, public education, community outreach and clinical services in acupuncture and herbal medicine. ACTCM has been the recipient of many awards for its curriculum, faculty and clinic, and has been voted “Best of the Bay” by both the San Francisco Weekly and the San Francisco Bay Guardian. ACTCM is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine and is a private, nonprofit, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization.