Academy • History • Associations • Legal status • Contact
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To improve the Finnish TCM education the Academy of Chinese Medicine was established in 2017. The first class started their studies in Medical center Sofianova and in 2018 the Academy moved to into Eira hospital becoming the only acupuncture school in Finland running in hospital environment.
Eira Hospital and Medical Center is a renowned private medical facility located in southern Helsinki offering wide-ranging medical services and surgical excellence in all key care areas. The hospital has been in operation for more than 100 years.
Beside the general practitioners and medical specialists from fields of internal medicine, geriatry, pulmonary medicine, occupational health, urology, obstetrics and gynaecology ophthalmology, psychiatry, surgery and gastroenterological surgery, orthopaedic surgery etc.,
the Eira Hospital has offered acupuncture performed by Chinese medicine practitioner since 1990’s.
The Academy of Chinese Medicine curriculum fulfils both the WHO and the ETCMA educational criteria. The program containing 4005 study hours (148 ETCS or 296 UK credits) is partly based on Beijing University of Chinese Medicine curriculum. The courses involving herbal medicine have been replaced with acupuncture due legal status of Chinese herbs.
The program consists of classroom studies, online lectures and study materials, clinical training in Eira Hospital and modern medical studies in a university. The aim is integration of Chinese medicine and modern medical science and health care while honouring the history, classics and philosophy behind Chinese medicine.
Teachers and clinical supervisors have strong clinical experience. They have been in practice for several years and beside being acupuncturists, many of teachers are also registered medical personnel.
The main staff have done related studies in different universities or universities of applied sciences aboard. All of the teachers have different specialities (tuina, pain management, oncology, cupping, fire needling, electro-acupuncture etc.)
Visiting lecturers are usually doctors and professors from different universities who are involved in current research and practices. The visiting lecturers are involded in live and online classes.
In Finland the first Chinese medicine and acupuncter educations started over 30 years ago but still in 2016 the education fell short from the criteria set by WHO and European Traditional Chinese Medicine Association (ETCMA).
WHO had published the Guidelines on Basic Training and Safety in Acupuncture in 1999 and Benchmarks for Training in Traditional Chinese Medicine in 2010. ETCMA had published Minimum Educational Criteria for Membership of the ETCMA in 2013.
The first acupuncture program started in 1987. The Finnish Neijing School was first operating acupuncture school, It co-operated with Spanish José Luis Padilla Corral and International Neijing Schools.
The first Chinese Medicine association Finnacu (formely Itämainen hoitoperinne RY) was established and it collaborated with Chinese schools, universities and doctors.
The early curriculumns were based on work done by Finnacu and professor Liu Baoyan (President of World Federation of Acupuncture-Moxibustion Societies - WFAS). Finnacu is one of the founding members of ETCMA and the current curriculumns follow the WHO and ETCMA educational criterias.
In Finland, there are currently two schools (Academy of Chinese Medicine and Oulun Akukoulu) offering acupuncture education that fulfills education criteria set by European Traditional Chinese Medicine Association (ETCMA).
The minimun educational of ETCMA consists 3600 hours. Of these 1600 hours are of Chinese medicine and acupuncture, 1200 hours of clinical practice and minimum of 800 hours of modern medicine.
There are around 300-500 professional acupuncturists in Finland. Most of them are workomg as priate entrepreneur outside public Health care. During the last few years there have been increasing demand for acupuncture also in Occupational and Public Health Care.
There are three professional associations for Traditional Chinese Medicine and two medical acupuncture (physiotherapy and medical doctors) associations. Beside these, there are some smaller & non-functioning organisations.
The Finnish Traditional Chinese Medicine Society of Acupuncture and Herbs (Finnacu) is the oldest and biggest assocition. It is also one of the founding members of ETCMA and the only association in Finland following WHO and ETCMA educational criteria.
The Finnacu registers qualified acupuncturists and offers them proper insurance. The association also register new education programs conforming ETCMA standards.
The association also provides other professional services and and arranges continual education for its members.
For more classical forms of acupuncture such as brought to West by Johannes Diedericus (Dick) van Buren from International College of Oriental Medicine (ICOM), there exists own association - Klassisen Akupunktion yhdistys ry.
Akupunktioammattilaiset RY (formely known as Baihui RY) is mainly for acupuncturists trained by Antti Rautio and Tero Inkeri.
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Academy of Chinese Medicine
akatemia@kiinalainenlaaketiede.fi
Finnacu
pj@finnacu.fi