Acupuncture Education – A Confusing Topic

People who search for Acupuncture services in Ontario tend to get a little confused as to which Acupuncture provider is best suited for their health issue.

Many regulated healthcare practitioners are permitted to provide Acupuncture (i.e. Naturopaths, Chiropractors, Physiotherapists, Massage therapists etc.) – often leading to public confusion as to which practitioner is most appropriate.

Although these healthcare practitioners are able to provide Acupuncture within their scope of practice – they are not allowed to be called Acupuncturists and/or TCM Practitioners.  If you are looking for coverage for “acupuncture”, the above practitioners will not be suitable.

More importantly – if the person you are seeing does not have R.Ac. or R.TCMP beside their name, they have less experience and training – particularly when it comes to internal medicine issues such as the treatment of infertility.

Bottom line – if you have fertility concerns and you are interested in using Acupuncture or other TCM treatments (i.e. herbal medicine) to help – your best option is an experienced R.Ac. or R.TCMP.

Let me be clear – I have no issues with Chiropractors etc. using Acupuncture for things like sports injuries – they are trained for this type of treatment.  However, if you have a problem which is more of an internal medicine issue (infertility, digestive, anxiety etc.) – this is best suited for those with higher amounts of Acupuncture education.

To see if your Acupuncture provider is a registered practitioner – just visit the College of TCM Practitioners & Acupuncturists of Ontario (www.ctcmpao.on.ca) and search for their name.

Drew’s Acupuncture Education

After graduating with an honours Health Sciences degree, Drew spent an additional 4 years at the Toronto School of Traditional Chinese Medicine (www.tstcm.com) learning Acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, TCM diet therapy, Tuina massage, cupping and many other TCM therapies.  Graduates of TCM specific programs like the ones at TSTCM have the highest amount of classroom hours, clinical hours, and practical hours compared to all the regulated health professionals who provide Acupuncture.

Drew has first hand experience with this as he has spent the last 15 years teaching Acupuncture at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine (CCNM – Toronto campus).

If you’ve worked with a Naturopath who has graduated within the last 15 years, it is very likely that Drew has taught them the basics of Acupuncture.

“I absolutely love teaching Acupuncture – I get so much joy from it.  So much so that I started an online course for Acupuncture students.”  www.AcupunctureMasterclass.com

Drew was also on the steering committee for the development of the first Acupuncture diploma program at the college level at Georgian College in Barrie, Ontario. 

Continuing Education surrounding TCM and infertility has always been an important part of my ongoing education.  There are wonderful experts all over the world and I enjoy learning from all of them. 

Summary of Drew’s Qualifications

  • Completed a 4 year full-time Doctoral Diploma in Traditional Chinese Medicine www.tstcm.com
  • Registered with the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of Ontario (CTCMPAO) www.ctcmpao.on.ca
  • Received a Diploma in Natural Nutrition from the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition  www.csnn.ca
  • Received an Honours BA in Health Studies from Brock University www.brocku.ca
  • Teaches in the Asian Medicine department at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine www.ccnm.edu
  • Steering committee member for the development of Georgian College’s Acupuncture Diploma program
  • Certified and insured to provide acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, nutritional consulting, moxibustion, cupping, tuina massage and NADA protocol
  • Actively practicing for over 20 years in an integrated clinical setting
  • Working with fertility enhancement for over 15 years
  • Certified in Clean Needle Technique (CNT), disposable needles only www.ccaom.org
  • Remains at the top of his field through a dedication to research and professional development
  • Educates other health professionals on the topic of TCM through seminars and presentations: Mount Sinai Hospital’s fertility department, Wasser Pain Management clinic, St. Joseph’s Health Centre Physiotherapy department, etc.
  • Published multiple articles in health magazines and health-based websites such as MediResource, Acupuncture.com and Hospital News
  • Services covered by the majority of individual health insurance plans