The American Association of Oriental Medicine's 2002 Annual Convention will be held this November 15-18 at the Holiday Inn Rossyln in Arlington, Virginia, just across the Potomac River from Georgetown University and Washington D.C., and a short Metro ride from our nation's capital and Reagan National Airport.
As 2002 is a year of mid-term elections, we recognize that this is an important nexus in the future of our field of medicine, and encourage your personal participation is needed at these meetings. To facilitate matters, the AAOM will provide training and an organizational process so that our members can easily arrange to visit their representatives and senators while coming to the conference.
While we understand the important political timing of our conference, we will continue to have the same quality educational programs and high level of professional interaction for which our conferences are renowned. Among the featured speakers and topics of discussion at this year's meeting:
Education
Gene Bruno, OMD, will teach a class on the treatment of macular degeneration, a disease that affects over 15 million people in the United States alone. Dr. Bruno will demonstrate the first protocol that will usually slow the advance of the disease, and in most cases will help restore vision. Combine this class with Marc Grossman's nutrition course for the eyes and other electro-stim courses, and you will be on the cutting edge of treating eye diseases.
Misha Cohen, OMD, will deliver a talk entitled "TCM Treatment of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Lesions: Preventing Cervical and Anal Cancer." Learning how to deal with this disease before it progresses, can prevent cancer and enhance overall wellness. This class showcases Oriental medicine being used to its fullest capacity when working with deadly disorders that are evolving and changing even as we develop an understanding of them.
Laura Dawson, LAc, will teach the use of TCM nutrition in the Western clinic, with a one-day follow-up training on the Monday following the conference. This an extremely important aspect of our field, which you can use to enhance your practice.
Marc Grossman, OD, LAc, will speak on the use of nutrition in the treatment of eye disorders. Using recent research and his lengthy clinical experience, he will help provide our us with the best tools to help make a difference in our patients' lives. Combine this course with Dr. Gene Bruno's use of microcurrent for macular degeneration, and you will be able to provide a much-needed service to your patients in their quest to regain and retain vision.
Neiqing Gu, OMD, will hold a lecture on breast cysts and tumors, which will be presented in both the English and Chinese tracks. Dr. Gu's lecture covers the TCM treatment of breast lumps with acupuncture, diet and herbs. Combine this class with Dr. Sellers' class on for a deeper understanding of the subject.
Martin Kane, LAc, will teach a class on the understanding of homeopathy from an Oriental medicine viewpoint and illustrate how to use homeopathy synergistically with different aspects of our field. This is an exciting and much-needed course.
Sam Liang, OMD, will speak on the use of TCM for fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue. Dr. Liang's lectures are considered among the most practical clinical views on many aspects of TCM. By request, he is the only speaker to speak at over seven consecutive AAOM conferences. This course promises to be interesting and useful.
May Loo, MD, will discuss acupuncture Pediatrics. With her many years of clinical experience in this country, she has a clear understanding of the interaction between Western and Eastern medicine. Understanding this interaction can certainly enhance our quality of care.
Alon Marcus, OMD, will demonstrate advanced needling techniques for the treatment of myofacial disorders for orthopedic complaints. This class will be immediately useful for every practitioner attending the conference. Dr. Marcus will also be discuss specific information on the use of milli- and micro-stimulation for use in myofacial treatment. By request, we recently added an extra full day intensive course on Monday with Dr. Marcus entitled "Acupuncture Orthopedic Diagnosis and Treatment of the Knee."
Joel Rossen, DVM, is one of the leading experts in the field of microcurrent stimulation. He will be speaking on electro-stimulation (milli and micro) and its effects on physiology and specific diseases. His course will add clarity and clinical utility to your existing treatment capabilities.
Bettina Sellers, DOM, will speak on the use of Oriental medicine in the treatment of breast cancer. This presentation will enhance your knowledge of our field to include more complex and even life-threatening disorders with a view towards the patient's best care. Combining this class with Dr. Gu's class will give practitioners deeper understanding of breast diseases and disorders.
Eric Serejesky, LAc, will describe the foundations of the French energetic system of acupuncture, providing information that will help in the understanding of this useful and complex paradigm. By request, Eric will follow his lecture with a full day course on Monday, expanding on the information provided and increasing its clinical utility.
Miki Shima, OMD, will speak on historical and clinical uses of the dan tian (Ren 6). Dr. Shima will clear up historical inaccuracies and speak on the diagnosis and treatment of disorders specifically related to the dan tian and the dai channel.
Panel Discussions and Workshops
Will Morris, OMD and Benjamin Yang, OMD, will participate in a panel moderated by AAOM Board member William Pettis, LAc, titled "Oriental Medicine, Building Efficacy: The Current Clinical Evidence," with a focus on research development and its utility in private practice, hospitals and college campuses.
The AAOM will sponsor a panel for a discussion of biomedical prerequisites and the future of the field of Oriental medicine in this country. There are many views on this important subject, so make your view known and be part of the discussion. Panel members will include John Myerson, Benjamin Dierauf and Glenn Wilcox. The panel will be moderated by AAOM Board member Tad Stzykowski.
The AAOM will also have a panel on herbal medicine with Nigel Dawes, Benjamin Dierauf, Cindy Micleu and Kevin Ergil. The panel will be moderated by Mark Thoman. The focus will be on the regulation and availability of Chinese herbs, with some specific discussion of the NCCAOM's certification processes and how AAOM can interact with the NCCAOM to better the profession.
The NCCAOM will also sponsor an item writing workshop on Sunday, November 17th for exam development. This is an extremely important aspect of the future of our field, so we hope that volunteers will spend Sunday morning working for their profession in this way.
Office Management
For the first time, the AAOM will provide an important new service for our members. On Sunday, the 17th, we will provide training that will enhance our members' practice capabilities. This is an entirely new conference track which is free to members. The lineup for the Office Management track is as follows:
Michael Gaeta, LAc, will provide office tips and techniques to increase efficiency and income generating aspects of office skills. A patient's first impressions; your practice's public relations skills, professional record keeping; and communicating with practitioners from other fields, will all be discussed.
Marilyn Allen will guide us towards enhancing our financial viability! Building a practice is just as important as having one!
The NCCAOM will sponsor a workshop on helping practitioners develop media relations to enhance their practices (and avoid any costly faux pas). The speaker will be Troy Petenbrink, the NCCAOM's professional public relations director.
These are just a few of the dozens of workshops, seminars and classes to be held at this year's meeting. In addition, many of the leading national acupuncture and Oriental medicine organizations will hold their annual meetings during the AAOM's conference. Here, leaders around the country will gather to help shape the direction of acupuncture and Oriental medicine for years to come. There is also a large exhibit hall, which is also free for members to visit during the conference, so that new and practicing acupuncturists can see the latest products and services available to the profession.
In recognition of the timing of this year's meeting, AAOM is also organizing a political action day prior to the conference. Robert Marcus, the AAOM's lobbyist, will work with acupuncturists interested in participating, then coordinate appointments with members of Congress on Capitol Hill so that acupuncturists can educate their representatives about the value of what our profession has to offer.
All members of the acupuncture and Oriental medicine profession are encouraged to attend this year's meeting. For more information, visit the AAOM's website at www.aaom.org, or call (888) 500-7999.