China Externship
Many acupuncture and Oriental medicine (AOM) programs in the United States offer students a trip to China. Bastyr University offers AOM students something more: a monthlong for-credit externship in China that uniquely prepares practitioners to work in integrative settings, with high patient volumes, and with people who have serious and unusual illnesses.
About the Externship
Students in Bastyr's graduate and post-graduate AOM programs can spend a month or more in the late spring or early fall studying abroad and learning traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) at two of China's most prestigious schools, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine or the Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Designed as an externship, the trip is organized to maximize students' hands-on clinical training by putting them in both outpatient and inpatient settings in teaching hospitals. In a typical day, students might shadow Chinese teaching physicians as they make rounds, check tongues and pulses, perform tests if needed, make herb/medication changes, and sometimes recommend or administer acupuncture treatments.
Value for Students
The common cold, a sore back, a stroke, cancer — in China every medical condition falls under the TCM practitioner's purview. This cultural difference means TCM physicians in China see triple the daily patient load typical for practitioners in America. For students on the externship, it means exposure to conditions and situations they probably won't encounter during clinical training in the United States.
“Clinical training in the University’s main clinic, its many specialty offsite clinics and the China externship brings the theory to life and help each student understand how to apply these principles to effectively treat disease and alleviate suffering,” says Richard (Kyo) Mitchell, DAOM, LAc, a faculty member in Bastyr's Department of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine.
Integration Benefits U.S. Patients
Clinical training in China offers another advantage: The teaching physicians are trained in both Western and Eastern medicine. These doctors model an integrative approach to treatment, often prescribing X-rays and laboratory tests alongside TCM treatments, which acupuncturists in America cannot do.
Bastyr students spend years learning to be 'gatekeepers' — identifying when treatment is appropriate, but also when Western interventions are needed. During the the externship, students witness an extremely integrative approach.
Nicolette Behne, a recent DAOM graduate who took the trip in May 2010, says the idea of integrating Eastern and Western medicine "really hit home during the externship," and she came home with many ideas on how to integrate in her private practice.
"It's about combining TCM and Western medicine in the best way possible to help people live longer with an improved quality of life," she says, noting that in China oncology patients can receive "Western" or "herbal" chemotherapy one day and then, on a non-chemo day, take support herbs that help with the side effects. "This allows patients to continue their chemo regimen. TCM and Western medicine can work together the same way here in the U.S."
The Future of AOM in the U.S.
Not only do externship students see a more integrative model of care in China, but they are afforded a glimpse into how TCM could evolve as a health care model in the United States. As TCM becomes more familiar to the general population and as its benefits become more widely recognized, practitioners must learn how to operate in integrative settings and work within a greater scope of practice.
“Our students are educated in traditional Chinese medical theory and western science," Dr. Mitchell says. "These two complementary perspectives deepen the students’ understanding of health and medicine beyond what can be understood from a single model perspective.”
Community Care Sites - Acupuncture
As part of Bastyr's acupuncture and Oriental medicine program, the University offers a number of sites where students can receive training and offer care to the community under the supervision of Bastyr clinical faculty. Collectively, students at these acupuncture and Oriental medicine "external site" clinics see approximately 2,600 patients a year.
The following clinics are training sites for students pursuing a Master of Science in Acupuncture or a Master of Science in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine:
Chronic Fatigue Center
Harborview Medical Center
325 Ninth Ave.
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 731-3111
Supervisor: Susan Kaetz, MPH, LAc
Shift schedule: 1-5 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays
The Chronic Fatigue Clinic (CFC) is located at Harborview Medical Center. Patients seen at the CFC have gone through a diagnostic protocol for chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia, performed by the medical staff of the clinic. Interested patients are referred to acupuncture. Acupuncture students have the opportunity to treat adults in a wide age range, who suffer from chronic pain and fatigue and associated illnesses such as depression and anxiety. We see on average 12 patients per week in the Chronic Fatigue Center.
Highpoint Medical Center
Puget Sound Neighborhood Health Center
6020 35th Ave SW
Seattle WA 98126
(206) 461-6966
Supervisor: Jim Dowling, RN, LAc
Shift schedule: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursdays
This neighborhood clinic provides acupuncture services to residents of West Seattle. Many of the patients are immigrants to the United States and services are provided through medical translators. Patients present with a variety of health concerns ranging from internal medicine disorders to post-traumatic stress and mental health concerns associated with relocation. We see on average six patients per week at Highpoint Medical Center.
International Clinic — Harborview Medical Center
325 Ninth Ave
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 731-4192
Supervisor: Angie Hughes, MAc, LAc, MS
Shift schedule: 1-5 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays
This clinic, formerly called the Refugee Clinic, provides health care services to recent immigrants to the United States. Patients, accompanied by translators, are referred to acupuncture for conditions ranging from chronic pain and post traumatic stress to digestive problems, depression and anxiety. This clinic offers a unique opportunity to work with a special population within a western medical setting and provide participation in an integrative model of health care. We see approximately 10 patients per week at the International Clinic.
Madison Clinic — Harborview Medical Center
325 Ninth Ave.
Seattle, WA 98104
(206) 731-5100
Supervisor: Shad Reinstien, LAc (summer); Sue Yang-Eng, DAOM, LAc (fall and winter)
Shift schedule: 12:30-4:30 p.m. Thursdays
This clinic is specific to patients of Harborview's Madison Clinic, a clinic serving patients with HIV/AIDS. Patients must be referred for acupuncture by their Madison Clinic primary care provider. Acupuncture students have the opportunity to treat HIV/AIDS patients with symptoms ranging from treatment side effects to multi-dimensional complications of this disease. We see approximately six patients per week at the Madison Clinic.
Providence Mt. St. Vincent's Nursing Center
4831 35th Ave. S.W.
Seattle, WA 98126
(206) 937-3700
Supervisor: Angie Hughes, MAc, LAc, Ms
Shift schedule: 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Wednesdays
Mt. St. Vincent is a progressive nursing center founded by the Sisters of Providence; affiliated with Providence Hospital. Acupuncture services are part of a Wellness Clinic offered to residents of Mt. St. Vincent's as well as staff, volunteers and members of the community. The acupuncture clinic of Mt. St. Vincent's provides students with the experience of working with elderly and disabled populations, providing a wide range of treatment modalities addressing both acute and chronic disorders. We see approximately eight patients per week at Providence Mt. St. Vincent Nursing Center.
Rainier Park Medical Clinic
Puget Sound Neighborhood Health Center
4400 37th Ave. S.
Seattle, WA 98118
(206) 461-6957
Supervisor: Eric Martin, MS LAc
Shift schedule: 4:30-8:30 p.m. Thursdays
This community clinic also provides primary and family health care to members of the South Seattle community. Clinical opportunities include working with both acute and chronic health concerns in an integrated community setting. We see approximately six patients per week at the Rainier Park Medical Clinic.
The following clinics are advanced oncology training sites for students in the Doctor of Acupuncture and Oriental medicine program:
Providence Regional Cancer Partnership
1717 13th St.
Everett, WA 98201
(425) 297-5536
Supervisor: Dr. Qiang Cao, MD (China), LAc (winter 2011); Dr Chongyun Liu, MD (China), LAc (spring and summer 2011)
Shift schedule: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursdays
The Cancer Partnership's program design adds evidence-based complementary therapy integrated with traditional medical treatments. This integrative approach includes acupuncture, hypnosis, touch therapies, massage, qigong, nutritional counseling, naturopathy and other therapies. The Cancer Partnership also offers cancer support services that incorporate distress management tools including patient and family counseling, support groups, chaplaincy, cancer-related psychopharmacology services and behavioral medicine. We see approximately 10 patients per week at the Providence Regional Cancer Partnership.
Skagit Valley Oncology Center
1415 E. Kincaid St.
Mount Vernon, WA 98273
(360) 424-4111
Supervisor: Kathleen Lumiere, DAOM, LAc
Shift schedule: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursdays
Skagit Valley Hospital Regional Cancer Care Center provides a multidisciplinary approach and comprehensive evaluation for newly diagnosed patients of breast cancer. Clinicians involved in the center include surgeons, pathologists, radiologists, radiation and medical oncologists along with providers of ancillary services such as nutrition, physical therapy and social work and complementary therapies such as acupuncture and massage. We see approximately five patients per week at the Skagit Valley Oncology Center.
About Acupuncture Clinical Training
Becoming an effective practitioner of acupuncture and Oriental medicine (AOM) involves close mentoring and instruction by experienced and knowledgeable faculty members in a variety of patient care settings.
Consistency and Quality in Training
To guarantee the highest consistency in quality education for its students, the AOM clinical program focuses the majority of your clinic shifts in the University's teaching clinic, Bastyr Center for Natural Health. Bastyr's acupuncture and Oriental medicine program is science-based, training you to the highest standards to be a qualified acupuncturist.
You will be prepared for licensure in the 44 states (and District of Columbia) that legally recognize acupuncture by Bastyr's highly qualified and experienced faculty, many of whom have been in practice more than 20 years in the United States and China.
Diverse Patient Population
In the course of your clinical training, you will have the opportunity to provide care to a wide range of patients with a variety of medical conditions. Within Bastyr Center, there are several different types of patient care shifts available to students:
- General acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine
- Immune wellness care for patients with HIV/AIDS
- Integrated acupuncture and naturopathic medicine (for students enrolled in both programs)
- Opportunities to rotate through off-site community care clinics that provide affordable health care to diverse populations, including seniors, low-income and immigrant communities.
For licensed acupuncturists who enroll in the Certificate in Chinese Herbal Medicine program, there are a number of herbal shifts available.
Patient Contacts/Training Hours
- You will obtain a minimum of 400 patient contacts with 100 different patients, a requirement that ensures your ability to be successful as a graduate.
- You will spend 44 preceptor hours "shadowing" and observing acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine professionals in their private practices.
- Clinic training hours vary by degree program, with 1,356 total clinical training hours for the Master of Science in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, and 828 hours for the Master of Science in Acupuncture.
- As a fourth-year master’s degree student, you have the unique opportunity to study acupuncture and/or Chinese herbal medicine at one of our sister schools in either Shanghai or Chengdu, China, under the leadership of Bastyr faculty. Learn more about the China externship.