AAMA 21st Annual Symposium

Twenty-first Anniversary Symposium of
The American Academy of Medical Acupuncture

April 2-5, 2009
Renaissance Worthington Hotel
Fort Worth, TX

The American Academy of Medical Acupuncture is pleased to present a symposium which meets the expressed need of physician acupuncturists to examine the mechanisms of acupuncture from several different perspectives and for more information on scientific studies and research findings regarding acupuncture. This meeting addresses topics suggested by practitioners and stresses the different acupuncture approaches to dealing with every day practical clinical problems with an emphasis on the scientific evidence for those approaches. Physicians have expressed the desire for exposure to alternative approaches to common clinical challenges. The different disciplines of acupuncture to be reviewed include Neuro-Anatomic, Energetics, and Traditional Chinese Medicine.  We will look at the different ways of treating the same clinical problems using these different disciplines, thus giving physicians not only a choice for treatment but also the sophistication of combining two or more disciplines to strengthen the efficacy of their treatment.

The thrust of this conference is to offer a multi-tiered approach to the understanding and clinical significance of acupuncture in a physician's daily practice, and to expand the awareness and understanding of the scientific research ongoing to examine the effects of acupuncture and acupuncture efficacy.  It is designed to provide physicians with information on different approaches to the treatment of common conditions seen in clinical practice so that they may tailor acupuncture treatments to the needs of their individual patients. The conference focuses on clinically relevant treatment approaches and techniques which the physician acupuncturist can put to immediate use.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

The Symposium is designed for instruction and training of physicians (MDs and DOs) interested in or already practicing acupuncture. Physicians with no experience and those with extensive background in medical acupuncture will find the program useful to their medical practices.

The Pre-Symposium workshops are intended to provide a more concentrated learning experience where the faculty can spend the entire day focused on a topic in greater depth and with more time for practical examples from clinical experiences.

Physicians with over 200 hours of formal medical acupuncture training and more than three years experience may choose the workshops that best suit their interest.

ACCREDITATION

The American Academy of Medical Acupuncture is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

The American Academy of Medical Acupuncture designates the Symposium for a maximum of 22 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Each Pre-Symposium workshop has been designated for a maximum of 7 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Each physician should claim only those hours of credit that he/she actually spent in the activity.

OBJECTIVES

Pre-Symposium Workshop I - Stephen R. Levinson, MD, el al: "Practice Management"

This workshop will be led by Stephen R. Levinson, MD, David Boguslavsky , MD, Aaron Micelfielder, MD, Anna C. Kelly, MD, FAAMA, David Groopman, MD, FAAMA, and John P. Kohler MD, FAAMA. Attend this session to learn everything you want to know about the management of a medical acupuncture practice. Topics will include billing and coding issues, anatomy of medical acupuncture practice, group practice setting, cash only practice, workman comp and injuries.

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Workshop II - Frank He, LAc: "Muscle Channel Technique and its Applications in Upper Extremity Problems"

Frank He, LAc, is Professor and Chair of Acupuncture Department, Five Branches Institute, Santa Cruz, CA. He has a Masters in Medicine from Liaoning University of TCM, Liaoning, China. He was a decathlete in China and specializes in sports medicine. The acupuncture technique that will be taught in this workshop is a very accessible, easily learned and applied technique, with broad applications and effectiveness in musculoskeletal conditions.

Workshop III - Judith Balk, MD, and Zheng Zeng, LAc: "Treatment of Female Infertility with Acupuncture"

This workshop will be divided up by two instructors: Judith Balk, MD. is Assistant Research Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh. In the morning session, she will review Western research and instruction in medical acupuncture as an approach to infertility. Zheng Zeng, LAc, Director, Department of Acupuncture Studies, Academy of Oriental Medicine at Austin, has a Masters in Medicine from Chengdu University of TCM, Chengdu, China. She taught Chinese and foreign students at Chengdu University of TCM for eight years. She specializes in women's health, including fertility, menstrual disorders and menopause. In the afternoon session, she will discuss the traditional Chinese approach and experience in treatment of female infertility with acupuncture. Instruction in the TCM approach and a review of some of the Chinese research on this subject will be presented.

GENERAL SESSIONS

Physicians attending the Symposium will be able to:

Understand how to integrate acupuncture into a contemporary medical practice. Understand the opportunities to utilize various approaches to the treatment of pain, headaches, musculoskeletal problems and common medical conditions. Learn the theoretical basis of and practical treatment techniques of acupuncture in the treatment of pain and common medical conditions.  Learn how certain medical conditions are evaluated and treated utilizing a scalp acupuncture technique. Learn the findings of recent research around the world on the effects and efficacy of acupuncture and the practice implications.   Learn how the potential benefits of taking a more holistic approach to patient assessment and treatment. Better understand the concepts of classical Chinese theories in the practical use of acupuncture in treatment approaches in a modern clinical setting. Learn how conditions commonly found in clinical practice can be treated using any one of several acupuncture approaches, or in combination, thus enhancing overall treatment results.