Challenges in Integrating Acupuncture for Hospitalized People

Insights from the Bnai Zion Medical Center Experience

Course Overview

Acupuncture is one of the most commonly used complementary medicine modalities in the outpatient setting. However, very few hospitals provide acupuncture treatments for hospitalized people systematically through their organization. Acupuncture provision in hospitals is a challenge for both the institution, the acupuncture practitioners, and the patients themselves. Issues of safety and effectiveness are substantially different from the outpatient setting. This presentation will outline the challenges, and provide guidance for integration of acupuncture based on nine years of operating the complementary medicine service at Bnai Zion Medical Center.