An innovative program that may herald the entry of Acupuncture into the traditional Western medical setting is kicking off in New York. St. Vincent's Hospital in Manhattan will be the site of a very unique program that will offer patients free or low cost access to Acupuncture in the facility’s Department of Rehabilitation.

A collaborative effort with the Chinese Medical Science Foundation (CMSF) will make this specialized care possible. It is expected that more than 1,500 patients will receive services through the Acupuncture Fellowship Program.

The benefits of Acupuncture have been known for thousands of years in the East, but acceptance of its benefits by mainstream medicine in the West have been slow in coming. This new program that took over two years to develop shows that Acupuncture is now poised to reach many more people through mainstream channels.

Throughout the program, evaluations and studies will be made of issues involved in the full integration of Acupuncture within a Western medical care facility. St. Vincent Catholic Medical Centers is one of the New York metropolitan area’s most comprehensive health care organizations, serving nearly 600,000 people annually.

“This program provides a model that is critical to the future of the way medicine is practiced,” said Linda Rapuano, director of the Mind/Body/Spirit Program at St. Vincent’s. “We will closely follow Acupuncture’s contributions to the overall recovery and well-being of our rehab patients.”

Dr. Ning Ma is the founder of CMSF and will supervise Acupuncture delivery. “The Acupuncture Fellowship Program is a groundbreaking initiative with benefits for patients, hospitals, and Acupuncturists. We believe our partnership with St. Vincent’s could develop a model for the future of integrative medicine.”

SOURCE: http://www.acupuncture.com/newsletters/m_july06/main3.htm