Annual AAMA Symposium Highlights
The AAMA’s in-person 2022 Annual Symposium drew attendees from across the United States to convene in Cincinnati, OH. Thank you to committee members, staff members, speakers, presenters, attendees and sponsors. Your contributions made the event a huge success! (For those of you who weren’t able to attend, it’s not too late to take advantage of the educational offerings. The session recordings will be available soon to watch on-demand.)
Among the important business and announcements (and fun!) that were part of the Symposium are the following:
Information & Idea Sharing
The current landscape of medical acupuncture and acupuncture research includes many contributing organizations. The AAMA is grateful to collaborate with and learn from each of the following:
- Medical Acupuncture journal
- Medical Acupuncture Research Foundation (MARF)
- Society for Acupuncture Research (SAR)
- International Council of Medical Acupuncture and Related Techniques (ICMART)
- American Society of Acupuncturists (ASA)
- American Academy of Pain Management (AAPM)
- Acupuncture Training Programs
Board of Directors
Following the recent AAMA elections, newly elected and re-elected to the Board of Directors are:
- Barbara de la Torre, MD, FAAMA
- Gavin Elliott, MD, FAAMA
- Demetrios Papadopoulos, MD, FAAMA
- Candace Warner, MD, FAAMA
- Joseph Audette, MD
- Donna Pittman, MD, FAAMA
- Montiel Rosenthal, MD, FAAMA
Newly elected officers for the Academy are:
- President – Kendra Unger, MD, FAAMA
- Vice President – Donna Pittman, MD, FAAMA
- Treasurer – Joseph Audette, MD
- Secretary – Michael Freedman, MD, FAAMA
- Immediate Past President – Freda Dreher, MD, FAAMA
Medical Acupuncture Research Foundation Session
Every year, the first session on Sunday morning at the Symposium showcases noteworthy member research. This year, the featured presentation was “The Neuroanatomic and Neurophysiologic Basis of Acupuncture Anatomy and Physiology” delivered by Peter Dorsher, MD.
New AAMA Fellows Elected!
Congratulations to the following members who were elected to be Fellows of the Academy during the Symposium:
- Stephanie Cheng, MD, FAAMA
- Kelly Hsu, MD, FAAMA
- Jason Oreskovich, DO, FAAMA
- Demetrios Papadopoulos, MD, FAAMA
If you are interested in becoming a Fellow, please review application details and the annual deadline on the AAMA website.
AAMA’s Annual Scientific Poster Presentation Winners
Congratulations to the following poster winners, whose outstanding work was presented during the Symposium:
1st place: $500; Yuan-Chi Lin, “Utilizing Acupuncture for Pediatric Patients Hospitalized with Intractable Headaches”
2nd place: $250; Semran Thamer, “Electro-acupuncture for Trigger Finger: A Case Report”
3rd place: $100; Stephanie Cheng, “Opioid-free Postoperative Analgesia After Bilateral Total Knee Arthroplasty in Patient Who Requested Intraoperative Acupuncture”
You can view brief promotional videos for all of these poster presentations in the Symposium event app.
One-day “Core Refresher” Course Launched
The day before the Annual Symposium began, 15 AAMA members attended the AAMA’s first Core Refresher course, designed as a stand-alone summary of the core principles with which a contemporary physician practicing medical acupuncture should be familiar. While the Medical Acupuncture Review Course does a thorough deep dive into each of the core areas, the Core Refresher provided a fast-paced, interactive broad strokes reminder and update utilizing clinical case presentations, as well as relevant point locations and their specific applications, to illustrate core principles. Let us know if you are interested in attending a Core Refresher course next year! Email the AAMA.
Submit Ideas for 2023 Annual Symposium
2023 Symposium – Save the Date!
Next year, the AAMA Annual Symposium will be held April 13-16, 2023, in the Dallas, TX area. Please add the dates to your calendar now and make plans to join your medical acupuncture peers from around the country.
Do you have ideas for lectures, presentations or workshops for the next Annual Symposium? Reach out and let us know now so the Symposium Committee can consider your topic proposals. Submit a proposal.
