TCM experts will present and exchange information on TCM philosophy, theories, and its broad array of treatment modalities and techniques, evidence-based research, as well as TCM's applications to prevention, health, and self-healing. The conference will provide a broad contextual framework in which to investigate the challenges and opportunities of integrating TCM with conventional medicine. Presenters will discuss the synergies that be achieved when TCM modalities are used in conjunction with conventional medical approaches; how and why TCM can help fill significant gaps in current medical care, and how its multi-treatment approach can contribute to alleviating certain health conditions, specifically cancer, pain, immune system disorders and women's health issues.

• Conference Goals
• Learning Objectives
• Who Should Attend
• Continuing Education Credit (CEU) / Professional Development Activity (PDA)
• Continuing Medical Education Credit (CME)
• About Traditional Chinese Medicine
• About Us
• Affiliate Partners
• Conference Chairs
• Organizing Committee
• Past Conferences
  

Conference Goals

The goal of Building Bridges is to improve health options and outcomes in the United States by educating CAM and conventional research, medical and health-care communities about all aspects of traditional Chinese medicine; the philosophical and theoretical underpinnings of TCM as well as the current research base of evidence for the full complement of modalities in the traditional Chinese medicine system, including: acupuncture, acupressure/bodywork, herbal treatments, Qigong, the prescription of foods for healing, and Chinese psychology.

In order to facilitate the successful integration of traditional Chinese medicine with conventional Western medicine and to effect positive and affordable health outcomes, this conference addresses four main goals:

• To further and provide a forum for the ongoing exchange of information on the philosophy, theories,
  techniques, scientific research and information about the full range of traditional Chinese medicine in a
  broad health-care context.
   
• To offer contemporary health-care practitioners techniques, case studies, and evidence-based research results,
  as well as practical ways to integrate this healing knowledge into patient care.
   
• To delineate the unique strengths of traditional Chinese medicine: in early diagnosis and prevention, its
  synergistic effect when used in complement with Western interventions for certain conditions; the range of its
  modalities and its philosophy of health, wellness and prevention; and to offer clinical practitioners reliable
  information on integrating this healing knowledge into patient care.
   
• To raise awareness and encourage implementation of traditional Chinese medicine in the United States
  by providing in-depth information about the challenges and advantages of the integration of TCM with
  Western medicine.

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this program, participants should be able to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of the current and potential role of traditional Chinese medicine in contemporary health care.
  
  
• Describe the philosophical and theoretical framework within which TCM operates.
  
  
• Identify the primary theories and treatment modalities that comprise TCM.
  
  
• Distinguish and identify TCM therapies that have been shown to benefit certain conditions.
  
  
• Discuss the latest clinical evidence for TCM and the current research in this field.
  
  
• Demonstrate an ability to hold an informed discussion with patients about TCM as a complementary therapy for certain health conditions.
  

Who Should Attend

• Acupuncturists
• Asian Bodywork Therapists
• CAM and Health-Care Administrators
• Chiropractors
• Clinic Directors and Administrators
• Educators/Academics
• Herbalists
• Homeopaths
• Insurers
• Massage Therapists
• Naturopaths
• Nurses
• Nurse Practitioners
• Nutritionists
• Osteopaths
• Pharmacists
• Physicians
• Physician Assistants
• Policymakers
• Psychologists
• Psychiatrists
• Publishers
• Researchers
• Social Workers
• Students
• TCM Practitioners
  

Continuing Education Credit (CEU) / Professional Development Activity (PDA)

Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available to TCM practitioners, acupuncturists, Chinese herbalists, and practitioners of Chinese body work. Conference participants will have the option of earning up to 21 CEUs from the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) for attendance at Plenary session, panel presentations, workshops and more. Note: The NCCAOM also refers to CEUs as Professional Development Activity (PDAs) points. See the NCCAOM Web site for details.

Continuing Medical Education Credit (CME)

The conference also offers CMEs for medical doctors, doctors of osteopathy and nurses through InnoVision Communications, LLC, publishers of Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine. Please e-mail info@tcmconference.org for more information.

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint sponsorship of InnoVision Communications and TCM World Foundation. InnoVision Communications is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians and takes responsibility for the content, quality, and scientific integrity of this CME activity.

InnoVision Communications designates this educational activity for a maximum of 18 hours in Category 1 Credit toward the American Medical Association (AMA) Physician's Recognition Award. Each Physician should claim only those hours of credit actually spent on the educational activity.

About Traditional Chinese Medicine

One of the oldest holistic medical systems in the world, TCM has been studied and practiced for more than 5,000 years. Hospitals and clinics throughout China have successfully integrated Western and traditional Chinese medicine to help patients heal from a wide range of conditions and diseases for more than 100 years. Building Bridges is designed to help provide health-care practitioners with the philosophical understanding and practical skills they need to deepen their understanding of TCM knowledge and integrate it into their work with patients in the West.

About Us

Building Bridges of Integration for Traditional Chinese Medicine 2004 is presented by the Traditional Chinese Medicine World Foundation, an educational, not-for-profit organization founded and directed by Nan Lu, OMD. The Foundation's mission is to serve as a source for authentic information on traditional Chinese medicine through educational programs, publications, and research. Its programs include: the Breast Cancer Prevention Project; the Dragon's Way® Stress Management and Weight Loss Program; Menopause Naturally; and Taiji for Health - Beyond the Martial Arts. TCM World Foundation publishes TCM World: the Newspaper of Health and Healing, the largest nationally distributed newspaper dedicated to helping educate consumers and Western health-care professionals about TCM, Qigong, natural self-healing and the internal martial arts.

TCM World Foundation
396 Broadway, Suite 502
New York, NY 10013
212-274-1079

Affiliate Partners

• Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Alliance
• Acupuncture Society of New York
• American Academy of Medical Acupuncture
• American Herbal Products Association
• American Holistic Health Association
• American Holistic Nurses' Association
• American Organization of Bodywork Therapies of Asia
• American Qigong Association
• East-West Academy of Healing Arts
• Integrative Medicine Alliance
• Maryland Acupuncture Society
• National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women's Health
• New Jersey Association for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine
• Traditional Chinese Medicine Association & Alumni
• Visiting Nurse Association of Long Island

Conference Chairs

Frances L. Brisbane, PhD (Conference Co-Chair)
Dean, School of Social Welfare
State University of New York at Stony Brook

Mitchell Gaynor, MD (Conference Co-Chair)
Clinical Assistant Professor,
Weill Medical College, Cornell University
Director, Gaynor Integrative Oncology
New York, NY

Nan Lu, OMD (Conference Vice Chair)
Founder and Director, Traditional Chinese Medicine World Foundation
New York, NY

Organizing Committee

Xiu-Min Li, MD (Committee Chair)
Assistant Professor, Pediatric Allergy and Immunology
Mt. Sinai School of Medicine
New York, NY

Effie Chow, PhD, RN, LAc
President, East-West Academy of Healing Arts
Member, White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy
San Francisco, CA

Lixin Huang, MS
President, American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine
San Francisco, CA

Michael Johnson, MD
Psychiatrist, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates
Boston, MA

Yong Ming Li, MD, PhD
Executive Director, TCM Association
Warren Hospital
Warren, NJ

Henry S. Sacks, MD
Director, Thomas C. Chalmers Clinical Trials Unit
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
New York, NY

Louis Evan Teichholz, MD
Chief of the Division of Cardiology
Medical Director of Cardiac Services
Medical Director, Complementary Medical Program
Center for Health and Healing, Hackensack University Medical Center
Hackensack, NJ

Jiang Hong Ye, MD, MS
Associate Professor, Anesthesiology
University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey
Newark, NJ

Past Conferences

The Web sites of past conferences are available through the following links:

• 2003 Building Bridges of Integration for TCM Conference Web site
• 2002 Building Bridges of Integration for TCM Conference Web site