Certificate in Chinese Herbal Medicine Program
The Certificate in Chinese Herbal Medicine Program is designed for licensed acupuncturists and graduates of acupuncture degree programs who wish to add herbal expertise as a component of their professional practices without having to complete an entire Traditional Chinese Medicine degree program.
Statement of Purpose:
The purpose of the Certificate in Chinese Herbal Medicine Program is to train acupuncture professionals in the clinical skills of Chinese herbal medicine to enable them to practice as independent Chinese herbal medicine health care providers in a variety of settings.
Program Goals:
- Educate students to become successful, effective, ethical Chinese herbal medicine healthcare providers
- Teach students the benefits, values and skills of integrating Traditional Chinese Medicine into whole person health systems of medical care
Program Learning Outcomes:
Those who complete the Certificate in Chinese Herbal Medicine Program will be able to evaluate a patient’s condition, develop an effective treatment strategy and provide a Chinese herbal medicine treatment to the patient, provide case management and modify the therapeutic plan based on the treatment outcomes.
There are a total of 33 credits (495 hours) of didactic courses and 12 credits (360 hours) of clinical training in the program, offered over a span of five trimesters (one year and eight months). The didactic courses introduce the student to over 400 individual herbs and 250 major formulas, including patent formulas, and move on to herbal treatment strategy, application of the herbal formulas for treatment of commonly seen clinical syndromes, consideration and analysis of specific cases, and toxicity / safe use of herbs.
The clinical progression moves from Observation, where students learn herbal pharmacy skills, to Internship, where students assume responsibility for the diagnosis and treatment of patients. Certificate Program students will have to take exams to qualify for Junior Internship (focusing on individual herbs), for Senior Internship (focusing on herbal formulas), and for graduation from the program. By the end of internship training, students must also submit a minimum of 100 case reports.
NYCTCM’s Certificate in Chinese Herbal Medicine Program is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine and qualifies students to sit for the NCBAHM Chinese Herbology examination. Passing the Chinese Herbology examination will qualify licensed acupuncturists to apply for NCBAHM Diplomate status in Chinese Herbology.
Applications are currently being accepted for students who wish to matriculate into the program. Transfer credit will be given for equivalent prior coursework.
For a complete list of didactic courses in the Certificate in Chinese Herbal Medicine program, please click here for the Catalog.