Hip and Trending Holistic Medicine

We had last announced that the onsite component of courses would not be held prior to June 30th due to covid-19. Since that announcement, some provinces have moved to stage 3 of reopening, and some restrictions are being relaxed re group size. Many of you are back to work, albeit with stringent safety requirements in place. We are monitoring those requirements in each province, by profession. We are therefore preparing to move forward with the onsite component of courses in certain provinces. If you are not local to a rescheduled course, you will need to be aware of travel restrictions. We will be reaching out to registered students to communicate new scheduling and working with each of you to make your training a rewarding experience. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Ontario is the one province where we will still be delaying in-person courses until further notice. We hope by end of summer or early fall to be able to move each of you through your courses, including Ontario. Pleas...

Some health professionals are starting back to clinical practice, as provinces start to reopen. However, social distancing measures and restrictions on the numbers of people allowed to gather, continue to be in effect. Due to this situation, Acupuncture Canada must continue to postpone the onsite component of upcoming courses and exams. We want to ensure the safety of students and instructors in the midst of this pandemic. We will continue to review the situation and as soon as we can safely hold the in-person components of courses and exams, we will. At this point we don’t see that being prior to June 30th, and that timeline could be extended. We will continue to communicate changes as information becomes available from provincial and national health authorities, and regulatory bodies. Once new dates are announced for courses and exams, if you are unable to attend, we will transfer you to a future offering. We hope to have these rescheduled onsite sessions happen in summer or early f...

Due to the current COVID-19 situation and the strict social distancing measures and the mandated closure of educational institutions and many business, Acupuncture Canada must continue to postpone the onsite component of upcoming courses. We want to ensure the safety of students and instructors in the midst of this pandemic. For those students travelling from out of province, it’s very difficult to get to the onsite training. We will continue to review the situation and as soon as we can safely hold the in-person components of courses, we will. At this point we don’t see that being prior to May 31st, and that timeline could be extended. We will continue to communicate changes as information becomes available from provincial and national health authorities. This is the list of courses currently effected by Covid-19. They are in-progress and they are a priority for us to complete as quickly and safely as possible: Foundations (AA1) in Winnipeg from March 27-29 Dry Needling Level 1 in...

We are postponing the onsite components of courses until after April 30 th . We are monitoring advisories from various provincial health agencies and Health Canada. Although our courses are not large gatherings and most students are local to them, the nature of the courses themselves prevent social distancing. We use hand sanitizer in all our courses and gloves in the dry needling courses, but students are still touching each other and in very close proximity as they learn needling techniques. We think it is best to reschedule. We will continue to follow public health advisories and will plan new onsite sessions as quickly as possible. Online portions of courses are in progress or will start as scheduled. Our goal is to help students complete their training as quickly and safely as possible. If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us at 416-752-3988 or via email at info@acupuncturecanada.org. Please stay healthy! The post COVID-19 appeared first on Acupuncture Cana...

We’re thrilled to have Dr. Steven KH Aung teaching in Toronto on June 9th — PTSD and Chronic Pain: A Physical, Mental and Spiritual Approach with Aung Vital Energetic Alignment. Dr. Aung is one of the most outstanding acupuncture practitioners and teachers as well as being a family, geriatric and integrative medicine physician and TCM practitioner. His list of accomplishments is remarkable: founder of the Medical Acupuncture Program at University of Alberta in 1991 medical consultant for the Cross Cancer Institute as well as the Glen Sather Sports Medicine Clinic and the Edmonton Oilers hockey team an active consultant for the College and Association of Acupuncturists of Alberta holds Visiting Professor appointments at the Beijing University of TCM and Research Institute, Nanjing University, California Institute for Human Science and the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, among others has been a World Health Organization advisor on acupuncture nomenclature and cancer pain...

Guest post from Catharine Maxwell-Palmer, BScPT, FCAMT, CAFCI. Catharine is an instructor with Acupuncture Canada and President-Elect of the Board of Directors. She practices in Calgary. In mid-October, I had the opportunity to attend the 2018 Orthopaedic Symposium, jointly hosted by CAMPT (Canadian Academy of Manipulative Physiotherapy) and the Orthopaedic Division of the CPA (Canadian Physiotherapy Association). The one-day presentations included speakers covering a variety of topics, from concussion to OA of the knee, from excellence to social media.   Reviewing my notes and thoughts after the day, I came away with several key thoughts: Acupuncture Acupuncture is a key and useful tool in the treatment of our patients. Of course, this was not new to me but in hearing Jesse Lumsden (former Canadian Olympic Athlete) speak, I was reminded, from the athlete perspective that skilled acupuncture and needling is essential to an athlete’s training and recovery. Jesse spoke very hig...

Linda Dyer-Macdonald is a teacher at Acupuncture Canada, as well as a registered physiotherapist.  She owns and operates her own clinic, Sport-Medic Physiotherapy, in Orangeville, Ontario.  She graduated from Western University with a Bachelor of Science. Acupuncture became central to her practice years ago, after her introduction to it as a patient.  In 1997 she joined the faculty of Acupuncture Canada.  A few years ago she led development of our Acupuncture Refresher Course.  Linda’s journey shows the difference acupuncture can make in a career. Patient She describes her introduction to acupuncture: I got interested in acupuncture many years ago when I had a cervical nerve root irritation, which was severely restricting my life.  I had constant pain and numbness in my left arm and I had the symptoms for nine months.  I was swimming a lot at the time, working full-time, and had 3-year-old twins.  After seeking multiple treatment techniques, I...

Although the practice of Dry Needling (DN) began to develop in the US in the 1940s, it was not until acupuncture made its way to North America in the 1970s that significant interest in DN took hold. Dry Needling is defined as the insertion of needles into tender points in the body without the injection of substances. Typically, DN is used to treat musculoskeletal disorders, especially myofascial pain. The technique revolves around the identification of tender points (trigger points) in the body. The perceived correlation between acupuncture and DN is a source of disagreement, especially in the United States, where the practices of acupuncture and DN rarely converge. While those practicing DN maintain that the practice was developed in isolation from acupuncture, those who practice acupuncture believe that traditional acupuncture encompasses all dry needle insertion techniques. In Canada, however, practitioners have been fortunate to avoid this controversy because of the long history o...

“Clinical Pearls” is a series that provides insight into the treatment of specific ailments, straight from our teachers and members. This contribution comes from Dr. Gerald Nemanishen, MD, CCFP, CAFCI.   One of the most common injuries to occur to a person’s neck is whiplash – the result of a sudden forward and backward movement of the head and neck, often caused by minor motor vehicle accidents. Dr. Nemanishen has found the application of Seirin Pyonex needles to be particularly effective and efficient in the treatment of acute cervical strain or whiplash. Pyonex needles are patch-type acupuncture needles that are designed to be maintained on the body for long-term placement. To treat whiplash, tender points are located, usually over GB 21, SI 13 and within the rhomboids. Dr. Nemanishen also checks the cervical transverse processes. He finds the most tender points usually C3 or C4. The affected areas are first cleaned with Stanhexidine, and once dry, the press pins are applied...

AA1: Foundations of Anatomical Acupuncture – The first leg of your journey If you’re looking to better serve your patients through the integration of acupuncture into your practice, the first step is to build a foundation. Start with our AA1 course – Foundations of Anatomical Acupuncture. During this 3-day in-classroom and 6-week online course, you’ll become familiar with the history of acupuncture, current research underlying its physiological mechanisms, and how the Meridian system works from the anatomical perspective. In addition to an in depth understanding of the theoretical underpinnings of acupuncture, AA1 equips you with the practical tools you need to locate and provide the rationale for effective acupuncture points for treatment of a variety of conditions. You will begin with a comparison of the basic concepts and theories of Anatomical and Classical Acupuncture. You’ll also learn to explain the theories of the mechanisms of action related to acupuncture and to assess your...

Meet the teacher is an ongoing series of profiles highlighting the instructors of Acupuncture Canada. Catherine Fuller, in addition to being an instructor at Acupuncture Canada , is also a registered physiotherapist and the part-owner and practitioner at Stayner Physiotherapy & Massage LTD in Stayner, ON. She attended the University of Alberta and the University of Toronto, and has been on the Board of Directors of Acupuncture Canada. A physiotherapist since 1986 and a teacher since 2001, she enjoys sharing her knowledge and experience with newcomers to acupuncture, so that they too, “may experience the wonders of acupuncture in their practices.” In her practice, she finds acupuncture especially useful in the treatment of painful conditions, such as acute low back pain , and uses it to assist in the management of digestive and hormonal problems. She describes acupuncture as a very useful tool. She notes that clients are pleasantly surprised to find that acupuncture does not hur...

I’m sad to report that our colleague and Acupuncture Canada co-founder, Dr. Joseph Wong, died early this morning. Joe has been through a protracted illness that began with a stroke earlier this year. Our thoughts are with Joe’s wife Marta and his children. Dr. Joseph Y. Wong received his MD in China and Canada followed by his medical specialty training in Canada in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. He practiced as a medical specialist in rehabilitation for 50 years. He participated in the founding of Acupuncture Canada (then Acupuncture Foundation of Canada) in 1974. Dr. Wong felt that TCM acupuncture teachings should be joined with western-based scientific medicine. He developed a new direction in acupuncture, based on anatomy and physiology, known as neuro-anatomical acupuncture. This new direction became the basis of the curriculum for Acupuncture Canada, where Dr. Wong was the Chief Lecturer from 1975-2001. So many health professionals who use acupuncture owe a debt of grati...