It is important that you check up on any TCM practitioner you may visit or anyone that claims to perform acupuncture. There are many credential initials following people's names these days. How can you tell what these initials mean and what steps were taken to earn such credentials. Many medical professionals at this time are able to complete acupuncture 'certification' courses. These certifications are often very short and very general introductions to a complex system. In Colorado some people claiming to practice acupuncture may have NO training at all or even as little as 46 hours of training!
The Acupuncture Association of Colorado recently reported the following:
Sadly, there are other standards for those calling themselves "Acupuncturists" or utilizing forms of "Acupuncture" here in Colorado:
• Physical Therapists (P.T.s)- were recently approved by the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies to practice dry needling with acupuncture needles. The only requirement is a 46 hour training and no separate registration with DORA.
• Chiropractors (D.C.s)- need only 100 hours of training, review 25 case histories and no examination to legally perform "acupuncture" in Colorado.
• Medical Doctors (M.D.s) and Doctors of Osteopathy (D.O.s) have no minimum training requirements to do "acupuncture" in this state. They call themselves "Medical Acupuncturists."
• There is an optional class at UCLA for physicians to learn "acupuncture." It is only 350 hours.
Any true TCM practitioner must pass the 4-year Master's program, pass all 5 national exams (for the Dipl. OM certification vs. 3 exams for Dipl. Ac certification) and obtain an individual state license to practice. At this time individual state requirements for licensure are different. An easy source to find state board information is the
National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine.
Here is more of what the Acupuncture Association of Colorado has put together regarding practitioner qualification.
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