ACAOM - Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine.
Act - the District of Columbia Health Occupations Revisions Act of 1985, effective March 25, 1986 (D.C. Law 6-99; D.C. Official Code §§ 3-1201.01et seq.).
Acupuncture program - a course of study in acupuncture that is at least three (3) years long and which is in addition to and separate from a baccalaureate degree program.
Acupuncturist - an individual licensed by the Board to perform acupuncture services.
Adjunctive therapies - those practices taught in ACAOM-approved schools and through NCCAOM-approved continuing education courses that are complementary to the performance of acupuncture.
Applicant - a person applying for a license to practice acupuncture under this chapter.
Board - the Board of Medicine, established by § 203(a) of the Act (D.C. Official Code § 3-1202.03(a) ).
Chinese Herbology - the administration or recommendation of botanical, mineral, or animal substances, including prepared and raw forms of single herbs or formulas tailored to the individual patient, which often uses all parts of a plant. Chinese Herbology does not include the injection of herbs.
Committee - the Advisory Committee on Acupuncture, established by § 203(a)(2) of the Act (D.C. Official Code § 3-1202.03(a)(2) ).
Electroacupuncture - the therapeutic use of weak electric currents at acupuncture loci to diagnose or to treat diseases or conditions.
Director - The Director of the Department of Health, or his or her designee.
Glandulars - non-prescriptive supplements that are derived from glands.
Gua sha - scraping applied to the surface of the skin with a round edged tool for therapeutic purposes.
Mechanical stimulation - stimulation on or near the surface of the body according to principles of Oriental medicine by means of apparatus or instrument.
Moxibustion - the therapeutic use of thermal stimulus on or near the surface of the body according to principles of Oriental medicine by burning artemisia alone or artemisia formulations.
NCCAOM - National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine.
Oriental dietary therapy - dietary and nutritional counseling and the recommendation of foods for therapeutic purposes.
Oriental medicine - a whole medical system originating in East Asia that aims to treat disease and support the body's ability to heal itself with a diverse range of traditional and modern therapeutic interventions.
Qigong - breathing techniques and exercises that promote health.
Sterilize or sterilization - the use of a physical or chemical procedure to destroy all microbial life including highly resistant bacterial endospores.
Surface stimulation - the application of purposeful stimuli to the surface of the body.
Tuina - a form of massage therapy based on traditional Oriental medical theories using or incorporating traction, manipulation of acupressure points, acupoint stimulation, and joint mobilization for therapeutic purposes.
D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 17, r. 17-4799