What do you look for in an acupuncturist?!
Question:
What do you look for in an acupuncturist?
What credentials are best, how do you find out what each doctor has?
Answers:
As a nationally licensed acupuncturist, I have a couple of suggestions.
First and foremost find out if he/she is nationally accredited by the NCCAOM. This is the national licensure board for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine in the states. Individuals with this certification have completed over 3000 hours of training, have passed the national exam, and have maintained their training by taking a minimum of 60 CEU's (continuing ed credits) each re-certification period.
Western MD's and Chiropracters who are legally allowed to practice acupuncture in the states typically have much less training (usually 200 -1000 hours) and are NOT licensed by the NCCAOM. Also, due to the fact that the state regulations are not universal, certain states do NOT require NCCAOM certification in order to practice, allowing individuals without substantial training to practice Acupuncture.
The best way to discover if an acupuncturist is NCCAOM certified is to ask them, or alternatively start your search for an acupuncturist at their web site, where all nationally licensed practitioners are listed by location: http://www.nccaom.org/find.htm
While many people feel more comfortable going to an MD for acupuncture, the fact of the matter is that the majority of western practitioners who include acupuncture in their scope of practice are NOT sufficiently trained in the treatment and diagnosis using this modality. It is a highly complex system that is dramatically different from western medicine and requires several years of training in order to master.
Additionally, given that many acupuncturists specialize (i.e. treat certain things such as allergies only, or women only etc.) be sure that you find a practitioner who has experience treating whatever it is that you are seeking treatment for. This will assist with recovery.
Some other points of interest you might want to discuss is how extensive their herbal training was (if you are interested in herbs) as the NCCAOM also regulates TCM Herbalists, and whether or not they did any interships (many schools offer programs in China where the students can learn in a Chinese hospital setting).
Hope that helps and good luck finding someone!