FAQs
- Dr. Dan is a Naturopathic Doctor and Licensed Acupuncturist who has been in private practice for 30 years
- The National College of Naturopathic Medicine in Portland, Oregon – the “Harvard of Naturopathic Medicine”
- The Oregon College of Oriental Medicine in Portland, Oregon
- Since Naturopathic Doctors don’t typically do hospital-based medicine they do not do internships - they do externships where they complete required supervised medical training in the field.
- The CHIEF COMPLAINT is discussed in detail
- A HPI or history of the present illness is taken
- A comprehensive REVIEW of SYSTEMS
- Medications and natural products
- Lifestyle and Dietary habits
- Pertinent PHYSICAL EXAM and LAB TESTING
- Counseling as required
-
- Naturopathic doctors and Oriental Medical Doctors do a thorough initial visit that typically takes about 1 ½ hours
- For CHRONIC medical conditions a compete intake including a comprehensive “REVIEW of SYSTEMS” is performed with pertinent history and physical,
- Naturopathic and Oriental Medical Doctors like to get to know their patients, that is why they can help so many, they assess the overall health of the individual, this visit provides the foundation or template for Naturopathic or Oriental Medicine treatment
- For ACUTE medical concerns the intake is much shorter and is more focused on the chief complaint and includes treatment
- Vitalistic naturopathic practice
- Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine/Chinese Herbs
- Not anymore – mainly supportive care and recovery from treatment ie. chemotherapy
- I refer to my colleagues that specialize in cancer treatment
- Is exceptional for acute care, trauma care, specialized surgical procedures
- Falls short for treatment of chronic conditions and engendering health and wellness
- Too much reliance on pharmaceutical therapies
What is the difference between functional medicine, naturopathic medicine, and traditional medicine?
Expand
- Naturopathic Medicine - “diagnoses, treats, and cares for patients, using a system of practice that bases its treatment of all physiological functions and abnormal conditions on natural laws governing the body, utilizes physiological, psychological and mechanical methods, such as air, water, heat, earth, phytotherapy (treatment by use of plants), electrotherapy, physiotherapy, minor surgery, mechanotherapy, naturopathic corrections and manipulation, and all natural methods or modalities, together with natural medicines, natural processed foods, herbs, and natural remedies. Excludes major surgery, therapeutic use of x-ray and radium, and prescribing of drugs, except those substances containing elements or compounds which are compounds of body tissues and are physiologically compatible to body processes for maintenance of life.”
- Functional Medicine – is mainstream medicine’s attempt to embrace and implement the principles of naturopathic medicine, it is patient centered and based on the idea that the root cause of disease is often nutritional deficiencies, toxicity, or some sort of disruption in normal biological function. Functional medicine doctors assume this dysfunction can be addressed by looking at how your body works as a whole - rather than focusing on one specific problem area. It is a step in the right direction but is not as comprehensive as naturopathic medicine
- Traditional Medicine – typically refers to the practice of or systems of medicine that predates modern medicine – such as Naturopathic Medicine, Ayurvedic Medicine, Native American Medicine, Oriental Medicine, Tibetan Medicine, Mexican Medicine (Curanderismo) etc. most cultures around the world have their own medical systems.
- Acupuncture stimulates certain points on or near the surface of the body by the insertion of acupuncture needles. Acupuncture Physical Medicine is a modern term used to perform an ancient practice that predates dry needling, myofascial trigger point needling and intramuscular stimulation (IMS). The traditional term is Ah-shi point, (pronounced ah-sure) translated literally as “Yes, that’s it” or “the painful point.” There is a reaction when Ah-shi points are stimulated by acupuncture needles. These points are not acupoints on any actual meridian, but they are used regularly and are considered a standard of practice to treat painful areas and muscle tension. Used alone or in conjunction with known acupuncture points, it is a painless and very effective treatment using very small 34–40-gauge filiform needles
- There is controversy regarding the definition of dry needling. Licensed medical physicians and Licensed Acupuncturists consider dry needling as Western Style Acupuncture or Trigger Point Acupuncture whereby the insertion sites are determined by tender painful areas and tight muscles. These sites may be treated alone or in combination with known acupuncture points. Other practitioners take the position that dry needling is different from acupuncture in that it is not a holistic procedure and does not use meridians or other Eastern medicine paradigms to determine the insertion sites. Dry needling, like acupuncture, involves the use of solid needles (contrasted with the use of hollow hypodermic needles that are used for injections) to treat muscle pain by stimulating and breaking muscular knots and bands. Dry needling is the insertion of filiform acupuncture needles into patients by Physical Therapists. Dry needling is also known as Myofascial Trigger Point needling and Intramuscular Stimulation (IMS)