When it comes to medical care we all deserve the very best. When it comes to acupuncture, there are various levels of training, and the consumer needs to pay attention. While national standards for acupuncture require years of dedicated graduate level training, there are various practitioners in the state who are practicing this medical technique with 200 hours or less of training.
Acupuncture is a medical technique that is based in various traditional systems of medicine that determine how and why (or why not) to use it for medical purposes. Those people trained in Oriental Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine, et.al, have the ability to be certified medical practitioners and use the title “acupuncturist” in the state of Wisconsin. The systems of Oriental or Asian medicine have become identified by the medical technique (acupuncture). This is equivalent to referring to all medical doctors as surgeons, regardless of specialty.
The training of surgeon involves more than just how to cut and sew. It includes extensive training in understanding the medical and scientific understanding of surgery in relation to the human body. Likewise, proper acupuncture training takes years of learning and understanding the dynamics of the human body and how that relates to the acupuncture techniques. Acupuncture and surgery are extensions of their respective systems of medicine that define when those techniques are appropriate. It would be inappropriate for practitioners of Oriental medicine/ acupuncturists to do surgery with minimal training. It is just as inappropriate for biomedically trained medical providers to provide acupuncture with minimal training.
As acupuncture has become more accepted, other health care providers have taken notice. Physicians, nurses and physical therapists who once called acupuncture quack medicine have now found justifications to allow them to do acupuncture with little or no training. The techniques are most often referred to as “medical acupuncture” or “dry needling”. The issue is not safety, but quality of service and whether patients can make a truly informed decision about their care. The 100-200 hour training courses can teach a medical provider how to safely use acupuncture needles. Wisconsin does not have an insurance parity law. This means that insurance companies can cover acupuncture services when provided by a medical provider who does not meet national certification standards. Without parity, insurance companies can, and do refuse to provide coverage for acupuncture services when provided by a state or nationally certified acupuncturist. Hospitals and other health care facilities have little incentive to hire certified acupuncturists, since they often cannot bill for the services provided.
Patients may believe that the medical provider that they are seeing understands what they are doing and is a qualified acupuncturist. The fact of the matter is that some medical practitioners are doing acupuncture and do not meet the defined standards for the title acupuncturist under Wisconsin law. Patients in Wisconsin deserve the best. They deserve to get their acupuncture services from a dedicated professional who meets the highest possible standards.
Always be aware of the credentials of your medical provider. Some medical doctors and others have national certification. These links allow you to see the if an acupuncture provider meets Wisconsin state certification standards and/or National Certification standards.
Other useful articles are Know your acupuncturist, Chinese Medicine, and medicine behind acupuncture
Comments