Community Style Acupuncture (Acupuncture Group Therapy): Why it’s a great treatment option for fixed income patients.

Many patients suffer from chronic pain that will not resolve in the typical insurance timeframe of 6-10 treatments. Community style acupuncture is wonderful bridge between full priced, private treatments, and nothing at all.

Recently, I had a patient come into my office in Eugene and inquire about acupuncture and herbal medicine for a chronic pain condition. After a detailed review of systems, I concluded that his condition would require 6-12 months of regular care—specifically meaning—acupuncture at least once per week with supplemental herbal formulas. This patient had been in multiple car accidents resulting in multiple spinal fusions to help correct herniated lumbar and thoracic discs. After having had surgery, steroid shots, and used oral pain killers for nearly a decade, he was desperate to find another pain management solution because his life—as he describes it—was slowly slipping into a endless cycle of pain medication, surgery, and relapse.

Upon hearing that he would need nearly a year of acupuncture therapy to help resolve his condition, he disappointedly shared with me that he was on a fixed income and could not afford regular treatments of $75 per week. I ask him what his budget was for therapy and he indicated that he was on a fixed income that was limited and small—only about $30/week. He was preparing to leave my office, when I asked to him stay, and indicated there was another option available: community style acupuncture, or Acupuncture Group Therapy.

Community style (Acupuncture Group Therapy) is a model of treatment that uses a sliding scale from $20-40 per treatment. The patient selects which price they feel is best suited to their budget, and they pay for a one-hour community style acupuncture treatment. Community treatments are group treatments (5-10 people seated in comfortable, reclining zero-gravity chairs) in a large room. During this time, the attending acupuncturist will seat the patient and conduct a brief medical intake. Acupuncture points will then be selected and treatment administered. Seat time is approximately one hour, on a first-come, first-served basis. After approximately one hour of needle retention time, needles will be removed and the patient is free to leave.

The benefits of Acupuncture Group Therapy are many, but the therapy is specifically indicated for those people who suffer from chronic, long-standing conditions that benefit from regular (one or more times per week) treatment. Additionally, the sliding-scale makes treatments affordable to those on a fixed income, or have limited resources for their healthcare.

Another wonderful benefit of Acupuncture Group Therapy is the group itself. Many patients report that when they are treated in a group setting, they feel much more calm and have a sense of stronger healing from each treatment. Feeling the augmented benefits of group treatments is a common phenomenon in the medical world, and Acupuncture Group Therapy uses this spectacular healing response to help optimize care for all patients.

Anjuna Medicine is pleased to announce that we have started two Acupuncture Group Therapy time slots: Wednesdays from 3pm-8pm, and Saturdays from 3pm-8pm.

If you know of a friend or family member who could benefit from Community Style Acupuncture Group Therapy, please have them contact Nathan at Anjuna Medicine: by phone 619-240-6497 or by email at ‘Nathan@AnjunaMedicine.com’

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Nathan J. Heide, M.S., L.Ac.

Mr. Heide is founder and President of Anjuna Medicine, LLC in Eugene, Oregon. Anjuna Medicine (www.AnjunaMedicine.com) is a private practice, focusing on integrative pain management solutions for chronic and recalcitrant diseases by using traditional East-Asian medical techniques. Mr. Heide is a graduate of Pacific College of Oriental Medicine (San Diego) and a current doctoral fellow at Oregon College of Oriental Medicine in Portland, Oregon.