About This Career

Diagnoses, treats, and prevents disorders by stimulating specific acupuncture points within the body using acupuncture needles. May also use cups, nutritional supplements, therapeutic massage, acupressure, and other alternative health therapies.

This career is part of the Health Science cluster Therapeutic Services pathway.

A person in this career:

• Develops individual treatment plans and strategies.
• Adheres to local, state, and federal laws, regulations, and statutes.
• Inserts needles to provide acupuncture treatment.
• Identifies correct anatomical and proportional point locations based on patients' anatomy and positions, contraindications, and precautions related to treatments, such as intradermal needles, moxibustion, electricity, guasha, or bleeding.
• Collects medical histories and general health and lifestyle information from patients.
• Treats patients using tools, such as needles, cups, ear balls, seeds, pellets, or nutritional supplements.
• Analyzes physical findings and medical histories to make diagnoses according to Oriental medicine traditions.
• Maintains and follows standard quality, safety, environmental, and infection control policies and procedures.
• Educates patients on topics, such as meditation, ergonomics, stretching, exercise, nutrition, the healing process, breathing, or relaxation techniques.
• Dispenses herbal formulas and informs patients of dosages and frequencies, treatment duration, possible side effects, and drug interactions.

Working Conditions and Physical Demands

People who do this job report that:

• You would often handle loads up to 10 lbs., sometimes up to 20 lbs. You might do a lot of walking or standing, or you might sit but use your arms and legs to control machines, equipment or tools.
• Exposed to disease and infections more than once a month through work such as patient care, laboratory work, and sanitation control
• Work in this occupation involves using your hands to hold, control, and feel objects more than one-third of the time
• Work in this occupation requires being inside most of the time
• Work in this occupation involves making repetitive motions more than one-third of the time
• Work in this occupation involves standing more than one-third of the time

Working in this career involves (physical activities):

• Seeing clearly up close
• Speaking clearly enough to be able to be understood by others
• Identifying and understanding the speech of another person

Work Hours and Travel

• Regular working hours and limited travel