Doctor of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine
Mission
The mission of the Doctor of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine program is to develop the knowledge and skills of highly qualified practitioners in the specialty area of advanced pain management. The program accomplishes this through rigorous training in Traditional Chinese Medicine and biomedical concepts and by emphasizing an integrative model of care delivery. The program graduates leaders prepared for lifelong learning and achievement in clinical practice, education and scholarship.
Expected Learning Outcomes
Graduates of the DAOM program’s clinical doctorate will have the skills to:
- Develop an advanced TCM diagnosis and treatment plan including all applicable modalities within the scope of practice, commensurate with the status of patients’ health
- Demonstrate an understanding of fundamental, advanced pain treatment protocols in order to inform TCM care
- Discuss treatment planning issues as part of an integrated medical team
- Demonstrate an ability to participate as part of a clinical supervisory team educating master’s students in acupuncture and TCM
- Conduct research demonstrating and refining skills in study design and comprehension
Program at a Glance
The Doctor of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (DAOM) program is a post-graduate, clinical doctorate that uses a weekend, intensive format designed to accommodate licensed practitioners who wish to complete their doctoral degree while maintaining their practices.
Prerequisites: The minimum prerequisite for the Doctor of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (DAOM) degree is a master's degree (or its equivalent) in acupuncture or acupuncture and Oriental medicine from an ACAOM-candidate or ACAOM-accredited program. Applicants must also be licensed in Washington State or in
Program Length: 1,223.5 hours / 8 quarters
Credits: 69 quarter credits
Didactic Hours: 561.5
Clinical Hours: 651.5
Specialty: Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Pain Management
Language of Instruction: All classes are taught in English.
Schedule: Modular-based. One three-day weekend a month, Friday through Sunday, plus one Monday each month (to be assigned). The schedule is projected for the third weekend of each month.
Financial Aid: Federal financial aid and limited Bastyr Scholarships are available to DAOM Students.
Location: Bastyr Center for Natural Health in Seattle, WA with preceptorship/externship opportunities nationwide and in China.
Program of Study
The Doctor of Oriental Medicine (DAOM) is a post-graduate (post Master’s), clinical doctoral program where students gain substantial clinical expertise, research competency, and greatly strengthened knowledge of acupuncture medicine. The DAOM program is dedicated to developing the knowledge and skills of qualified practitioners in the specialty of advanced pain relief and management.
The DAOM curriculum is delivered by a combination of Bastyr University’s expert faculty and internationally recognized, guest faculty whose knowledge and experience deeply enriches student learning. The Doctorate of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine program uses a weekend-intensive format that gives students the option of living and working elsewhere while completing the degree. Classes and a portion of the clinical training take place over one three-day weekend (Friday-Sunday) and one Monday per month for two years.
Bastyr’s DAOM students develop advanced clinical skills by combining theory and practice in hands-on internships, clinical theater, case discussions, preceptorships and a capstone research project. They also have the opportunity to participate in a China externship near the end of their studies.
Students experience rigorous training in traditional Chinese medicine and biomedical concepts in an integrative model of care delivery. Areas of study include advanced Chinese medical classics, research literacy and skills, advanced clinical skills, and specialty training modules in the relief and management of acute and chronic pain.
Skills in clinical supervision and teaching are developed and supported through instruction and practice at the Bastyr Center for Natural Health. Integrated pain management takes place during Grand Rounds with the UW Medical School Pain Management Clinic at Harborview Hospital in Seattle, WA. Patients of the Pain Management Clinic are treated in their hospital rooms at Harborview from whichever service they are being seen. One of the primary foci is not only relief of pain but the reduction of pharmaceutical medications, especially opiates.
In addition to training at Harborview and the Bastyr Center for Natural Health, knowledge and skills are expanded through varied practical applications such as Clinical Theater, where you observe visiting and local experts practice what they teach, preceptorships, private practice, clinical case histories, and a month-long China externship. Each student is appointed a mentor from whom they learn and apply research skills as they engage with their mentor and other colleagues when working on their doctoral capstone project.
Credentialing
- Must be licensed as an acupuncturist in Washington or one’s home state
- Must complete and pass a national background check
- Must complete TB screening
- Hepatitis B immunization (series of 3) or waiver is required
- Completion of HIPAA, BBP, and BCNH safety trainings
- All DAOM program students are required to have current CPR/AED (Cardiopulmonary resuscitation/ automated external defibrillator), AHA-approved for healthcare professionals, training certification
- Must have passed the Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (CCAOM) Clean Needle Technique Exam (CNT)
The curriculum tables that follow list the tentative schedule of courses each quarter.
DAOM Year I
Winter
| AM7100 | Clinic Entry for Clinicians and Supervisors | 0.75 |
| AM7103 | Pharmacology of Pain Management | 1 |
| AM7108 | Introduction to Case Study Writing | 0.25 |
| AM7111 | Neurobiology of Pain | 1 |
| AM7200 | Physical Exam | 2 |
| AM7300 | Trigger and Motor Points | 1 |
| AM7809 | Clinical Supervision | 0.5 |
| AM7810 | Grand Rounds | 0.5 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 7.00 |
Spring
| AM7112 | Biostatistics | 3 |
| AM7113 | Research Methods | 1 |
| AM7114 | Applied Research Skills | 2 |
| AM7115 | Reading Research 1 | 0.5 |
| AM7205 | Orthopedic and Neurological Assessment | 1.5 |
| AM7312 | Laser and Electro-Acupuncture | 1.5 |
| AM7811 | Grand Rounds | 0.5 |
| AM7814 | Clinical Case Discussions | 0.25 |
| AM7817 | Internship 1 | 0.5 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 10.75 |
Summer
| AM7116 | Reading Research 2 | 0.5 |
| AM7118 | Chinese Classics and Pain | 1.5 |
| AM7119 | Chinese Classics Discussion | 0.5 |
| AM7206 | Laboratory | 1 |
| AM7207 | Imaging I | 0.5 |
| AM7309 | Orthopedics andSports Acupuncture I Upper Body | 1.5 |
| AM7313 | Clinical Theater | 0.125 |
| AM7812 | Grand Rounds | 0.5 |
| AM7815 | Clinical Case Discussions | 0.25 |
| AM7818 | Internship 2 | 0.5 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 6.875 |
Fall
| AM7117 | Reading Research 3 | 0.5 |
| AM7120 | Capstone Development 1 | 0.5 |
| AM7208 | Imaging II | 0.5 |
| AM7310 | Orthopedics and Sports Acupuncture II Lower Body | 1.5 |
| AM7311 | Master Tung's Points/ Bleeding Techniques | 1.5 |
| AM7314 | Clinical Theater | 0.125 |
| AM7315 | Clinical Theater | 0.125 |
| AM7316 | Auricular Acupuncture and Other Microsystems | 1.5 |
| AM7402 | Bleeding Techniques | 0.5 |
| AM7405 | Scalp Acupuncture | 0.5 |
| AM7813 | Grand Rounds | 0.5 |
| AM7816 | Clinical Case Discussions | 0.25 |
| AM7819 | Internship 3 | 0.5 |
| AM7820 | Clinical Applications 1 | 0.25 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 8.750 |
DAOM Year II
Winter
| AM8107 | Capstone Development 2 | 0.5 |
| AM8303 | Advanced Tuina for Pain | 1 |
| AM8321 | Clinical Theater | 0.125 |
| AM8401 | Structural Integration and Pain Relief | 2 |
| AM8403 | Urogenital System | 0.5 |
| AM8404 | Digestive System | 0.5 |
| AM8405 | Gynecological System | 0.5 |
| AM8406 | Vascular System | 0.5 |
| AM8812 | Internship 4 | 0.5 |
| AM8816 | Grand Rounds | 0.5 |
| AM8820 | Clinical Case Discussions | 0.25 |
| AM8823 | Clinical Applications 2 | 0.25 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 7.125 |
Spring
| AM8104 | Psychological and Emotional Aspects of Pain | 0.5 |
| AM8105 | Exercise Physiology | 0.75 |
| AM8108 | Capstone Development 3 | 0.5 |
| AM8304 | Thai Massage Techniques for Pain | 1.25 |
| AM8305 | Qigong and Pain Relief | 0.75 |
| AM8316 | Arithitis and Rheumatology | 0.75 |
| AM8317 | Balance Method | 0.75 |
| AM8813 | Internship 5 | 0.5 |
| AM8817 | Grand Rounds | 0.5 |
| AM8821 | Clinical Case Discussions | 0.25 |
| AM8322 | Clinical Theater | 0.125 |
| AM8824 | Clinical Applications 3 | 0.25 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 6.875 |
Summer
| AM8109 | Capstone Development 4 | 0.5 |
| AM8306 | Japanese Acupuncture Techniques for Pain | 1.5 |
| AM8318 | Oncology and Autoimmune Conditions | 2 |
| AM8323 | Clinical Theater | 0.125 |
| AM8814 | Internship 6 | 0.5 |
| AM8818 | Grand Rounds | 0.5 |
| AM8826 | China Externship | 8 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 13.125 |
Fall
| AM8106 | Recent Research | 1 |
| AM8110 | Capstone Presentation | 1 |
| AM8319 | Pediatrics and Gerontology | 2 |
| AM8320 | Chinese Herbs for External Application | 0.5 |
| AM8402 | Nutrition, Botanicals & Supplements | 2 |
| AM8815 | Internship 7 | 0.5 |
| AM8819 | Grand Rounds | 0.5 |
| AM8822 | Clinical Case Discussions | 0.25 |
| AM8825 | Clinical Applications 4 | 0.25 |
| AM8827 | Preceptorship | 0.5 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 8.50 |
Total Requirements
| Total Didactic and Laboratory credit/hours |
43.25 / 500.5 |
| Total Clinic credit/hours |
19.25 / 651.5 |
| Total Online hybrid credit/hours |
6.50 / 71.5 |
| Total Course Credits/ hours |
69.0 / 1223.5 |
Curriculum and course changes in the 2017-2018 Bastyr University Catalog are applicable to students entering during the 2017-2018 academic year. Please refer to the appropriate catalog if interested in curriculum and courses required for any other entering year.
Graduation Requirements
Evaluation of didactic and clinical competency achievement for each course in the program is conducted on-line via Bastyr’s Moodle system. The evaluative tool is at the discretion of each instructor and could include an exam, a homework assignment, a relevant case history, etc. This is estimated to be accomplished in one hour/credit and will be assessed each quarter on a scale of AC/PC/F/I. All Incompletes (I) must be completed by the end of the following quarter.
The student is responsible for writing four (4) case histories relating to pain management from their own private practice, from their internship at BCNH, or other BU-affiliated facility, using Rubric I. In addition, the student is required to write two (2) formal integrative case studies relating to pain management from their own private practice or from the internship at BCNH or other BU-affiliated facility, using Rubric II.
Successful completion of the degree program requires a capstone thesis project pertinent to the area of specialty. The capstone project is an experiential project in which students apply what they’ve learned throughout the doctoral program and examine a specific idea. A variety of forms are possible including: clinical research, either a clinical trial or outcome study; laboratory in vitro research, case study or case series; retrospective clinical case review; meta-analysis; literature review; translation study; or a scholarly academic study. The Bastyr Capstone Manual defines the citation and format style.
Attendance
Attendance is required for all courses and clinic rotations. Courses missed, for any reason, without prior notice may be made up through the University’s Directed Study Policy, which can be seen at Academic-Catalog/Academic-Policy-and-Procedure-Manual/Direct Study.