CERTIFICATION AND LICENSURE

In a time of great change and growth for the profession of Chinese medicine in America, issues of certification and licensure are of great importance. I feel it is important for patients to know who is treating them, what sort of training they have had, and what their relationship to Chinese medicine is. Some of these issues have been addressed in the Acupuncture Home Page section. People will rarely question their medical doctors about their training or experience, but they will question their acupuncturist about theirs.

Acupuncture is the primary modality of Chinese medicine that is most widely known and accepted here. The first school of acupuncture opened in the late 1960’s, and an organized profession began to grow by 1980. It was during this time that professional associations arose to create a curriculum and a process for certification that would ensure standardized, high quality education and competent entry level practitioners. There are three levels of professional organizations that people should understand. Links to these are listed in the Resources section of this website.

• Professional associations. These organizations were created at state and national levels to promote the profession of Chinese medicine in America. Like the American Medical Association (AMA), they represent practitioners and their interests. Membership in professional associations is optional.

1. The American Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (AAAOM) is the national professional association in the United States.

2. The New Jersey Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NJAAOM) is the state professional association in New Jersey.

• Certification and licensure boards. These bodies exist to regulate both the educational standards and practice of Chinese medicine.

1. Most states have their own medical boards that regulate the practice of Chinese medicine in their state. The New Jersey State Board of Medical Examiners has regulated the practice of acupuncture in New Jersey since 1983.

2. The National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) administers national board certification to qualified practitioners. In western medicine, doctors would become board certified in their specialty, such as gynecology.

• Schools and educational institutions. There are several dozen schools of Chinese medicine throughout the country.

1. Qualified schools are accredited by the Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (CCAOM), which is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

2. The curriculum and degree-granting aspect of Chinese medical schools is developed by the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (ACAOM), also under the regulation of the U.S. Department of Education.

Acupuncture schools grant either a Diploma in Acupuncture or a Master’s in Acupuncture, depending on the state. This is a degree, and reflects the level of education received and required for beginning practice. As the profession has grown, higher levels of education have been organized in such a way that schools are beginning to offer a Doctorate in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine degree.

Degrees are not the same as licenses. A license allows a legal scope of practice, and varies from state to state. Schools have nothing to do with licenses. The license given in New Jersey is Certified Acupuncturist (C.A.). Licenses given in other states include Licensed Acupuncturist (L.Ac.), Registered Acupuncturist (R.Ac.), and Acupuncture Physician (A.P.). They describe varying scopes of practice and legal issues. Acupuncture, rather that herbology, is generally the modality that is licensed. In New Jersey acupuncturists are considered to be “physicians.” Some states use the title of ‘doctor.” The difference between educational degrees and licenses is a complicated one, even within the profession. These same issues exist for M.D.’s, D.O.’s, and D.C.’s, only they have been worked out due to a longer history of practice in this country. The most important issue regarding licenses and education is simply that a practitioner graduate from an accredited school, pass national boards, and be licensed in their state to practice.

As Chinese medicine becomes integrated into the mainstream healthcare system, the issue of scope of practice will become an increasingly important one. Chinese medicine is very much a style of medicine, not a collection of tricks and cures. It requires a lifetime of study and practice to master, as does anything of value. Many practitioners of alternative medicine include pieces of Chinese medicine in their work. Medical doctors, for example, typically practice a style of acupuncture referred to as medical acupuncture. This is a more limited style of practice, as it generally does not include all of the theoretical diagnostic parameters of Chinese medicine. Treatments are usually symptom based. This may be fine in some instances, but it important for all practitioners to know their scope of competency in a given field, and to be able to refer patients to other practitioners when necessary. I want to say here that I personally feel that a practitioner’s relationship to Chinese medicine matters. I have met licensed, well trained acupuncturists that I would never recommend or see myself. I also know doctors and chiropractors who practice Chinese medicine very well.

It is also important for both practitioner and patient to understand exactly what is being done. Treatments are frequently misrepresented, or at least misunderstood. I hear people throwing around terms like Chinese medicine, homeopathic, natural, organic, holistic, etc., without having any real understanding of what these mean. In the case of Chinese medicine, this may inhibit people’s ability to seek out treatment from an appropriately trained practitioner.