Southwest Acupuncture College to reopen in the new year

In 1997, the Southwest Acupuncture College was founded in Boulder, its mission is to educate and license students in acupuncture and Chinese medicine so as to provide affordable services to the local community.

But in mid-March of last year, COVID forced the Gunbarrel college to close its doors for in person classes.

"Rather than go from zero to 100 mph in one week with a full return to campus, our didactic, practical and clinical coursework would be rolled out slowly," explained Nate Mohler, the Academic Dean of the college.

Starting Jan. 11, the campus is doing a three-week tiered return to in person operations. The first week will involve scheduling on-campus practical classes while week two will see clinics return to campus. Finally, the third week will reinstate all didactic classes (e.g., instructive, lecture style classes) and patients will be able to return to campus.

In addition to the staggered return to campus, the college has installed HEPA filters in all rooms, requires masks and social distancing and will implement check-ins for everyone arriving on campus. This means that all students, faculty/staff, patients and visitors will have to fill out a COVID questionnaire and undergo a temperature check.

"We are really looking forward to safely reopening our campus and clinic in January," said Joanne Neville, the clinic director.

Part of this safe-reopening will also include an online clinic safety training to prepare students and clinic supervisors for the additional protocols adopted in light of COVID. The campus plans to be returned to full capacity by Feb. 1.

Mohler, Neville and the team members all seem excited and optimistic for the return to campus, teaching their students and serving their community.

"Acupuncture and herbal medicine are my go-to favorite things to provide to patients," said Mohler. "I entered the profession to learn about acupuncture...Having been in practice for 16 years, been involved in educating within the field and having pursued botanical knowledge in my personal time, I have come to very much love herbal medicine as well."

According to the team, common treatments from their acupuncturists and herbalists include: pain and injury, digestive issues, depression/anxiety, headaches/migraines, and more. Some practitioners also specialize in treating specific conditions, while others have a more general practice.

Mohler further explained that for those seeking treatment, it's a great complement to other practices like physical therapy, "While patients would prefer a one-stop-for-all-things practitioner, this is not really all that realistic," he said. He further noted that, like many remedies, treatment and reaction to the treatment varies among people. For some, one acupuncture treatment may have a complete abatement of their symptoms for a few days, but even if the symptoms don't entirely disappear, many patients report a higher sense of well-being.

"We really coach them about long term health and let them know that we can do more as a team and we want them to be committed to their own wellness," commented Neville.

For both Neville and Mohler, it seems that this combination of treatment and teaching is one of the fulfilling aspects of practicing acupuncture and teaching the practice to others.

For those interested in learning about acupuncture and Chinese medicine, it's worth noting that licensure in the field typically takes between three to five years, and it's complex. This is in part due to the fact that acupuncture licensure varies from state to state. For more information, visit the college's website here.