Clinical Education
Receive training from clinicians and practitioners educated in China and the U.S.
The majority of your clinical training will be guided by the clinic faculty in the Yo San Community Clinic. Throughout your internship, you will treat a wide range of conditions including musculoskeletal problems, arthritis, and athletic injuries; an assortment of internal conditions such as symptoms related to cancer treatment, gynecological complaints, digestive, respiratory, and urinary tract disorders; and ongoing conditions such as migraine headaches, chronic fatigue, and mood disorders (mild depression and anxiety). In addition to working with different supervisors, you will have the chance to discuss difficult cases with your classmates in Case Study classes including an integrative Case Study lead by an MD faculty member.
Year One and Two - the Herbal Dispensary
Your clinical education starts in your first year and continues into your second year in the Yo San Community Clinic Herbal Dispensary where you will learn to assemble granule and bulk herb formula. Our Herbal Dispensary offers bulk herbs, granule herbs, pills and patent medicine, as well as liniments and topical applications. Though you will not be writing herbal formulas, you will receive hands-on experience with herbs and an opportunity to discuss herbal formulations with the Herbal Dispensary Manager.
Year Three - Clinical Observation
The clinical studies program continues in the third year with Clinical Observation in the Yo San Community Clinic. During Clinical Observation, you will observe treatments by interns and clinical faculty in the Clinic.
Year Four- Internship
Finally, in your fourth year, along with a lighter academic load, you will begin Clinical Internship. Interns treat patients using Oriental medical therapies including acupuncture and non-needling techniques, Chinese herbal medicine and Oriental therapeutic massage.We want our graduates to have as much independent experience as possible when treating patients. To this end, interns work in pairs for a portion of their first trimester of internship to gain self-confidence and receive intensive attention and direction from their clinic supervisors. The remainder of their internship is then spent treating patients independently under supervision. All interns are trained and supervised by an expert group of clinical faculty, with a variety of styles, strengths, cultural backgrounds and specialties.
Test Ground for Your Future Practice
Yo San's Community Clinic functions as a testing ground for your future practice. Your experiences will include mastering office protocol, training in the most up-to-date health regulations, making presentations to civic and local groups, and educating the public about the benefits of TCM. You will also have the opportunity to bring Chinese medicine to under served communities through Yo San's off-site externship programs at the Venice Family Clinic, the largest free clinic in the United States, and Being Alive, an HIV/AIDS healing center in West Hollywood.