NESA-Boston Medical Center Acupuncture Residency in Family Medicine

with Ellen Highfield, LicAc

12 weeks
30 CAEs
This residency typically runs January – April

We are pleased to offer this residency as an immersion experience in Integrative Medicine. This Residency provides a unique opportunity to be involved in the development of an emerging integrative model of care in a major urban hospital setting.  Residents will treat outpatients in the Department of Family Medicine.
The Residents will be oriented to the Department of Family Medicine’s outpatient clinic by Ellen Highfield, LicAc, Director of Acupuncture Programs and Assistant Professor, Department of Family Medicine at Boston Medical Center, and be attended by Ms. Highfield during their Residency.
Each Tuesday shift will begin with Department of Family Medicine Grand Rounds followed by 1 hour of Acupuncture Case Review or Integrative Medicine presentation and 3 hours of treating patients.  Additional commitments outside the shift are described below.

This Acupuncture Residency has Several Required Components:

  1. Patient care Tuesdays 2:30-5:30: treating outpatients 3 hours per week in the Department of Family Medicine. This socioeconomically and culturally diverse patient population generally presents with chronic and/or complex health concerns such as kidney disease, diabetes, etc.
  2. Didactic component Tuesdays 1:30-2:30:
    • Integrative Medicine lectures/presentations/discussions: Members of the Integrative Medicine team, including physicians from various BMC departments, will present to the acupuncture residents.  These presenters will discuss the Western medical perspective of patient care, providing a unique opportunity for integrative clinical dialogue.  BUSM Family Medicine residents are invited to the presentations.
    • Acupuncture case review led by Ellen Highfield: case review includes case discussions of patients being seen, with particular emphasis on managing their complex clinical priorities within the context of an acupuncture clinic. Additionally, the logistics of practicing as an Integrative Medicine provider in this hospital setting will be discussed and woven throughout the residency experience.  Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) Family Medicine residents are invited to the acupuncture residency case review. They are also invited to shadow the acupuncture residents from time to time.
  3. Department of Family Medicine Grand Rounds each Tuesday 12:00-1:00: Presentations by Family Medicine faculty about specific topics of interest; may also feature outside lecturers. Lunch is served.
  4. Shadowing Integrative Medicine Physicians: required twice during residency, though may occur more if residents wish; days/times vary, as this is scheduled outside the Tuesday 12:00-5:30 time; residents arrange to fit their schedules as much as possible.
  5. Acupuncture Department Team Meetings: first Monday of the month 9:30am-11:00am. Acupuncture is delivered in 4 clinics at BMC. This meeting gives the staff acupuncturists a chance to problem solve, collaborate on new procedures, create new systems and/or review cases, etc.
  6. Integrative Medicine Meetings: first Monday of the month 11:00-12:00. A multi-disciplinary/interdepartmental opportunity for those within BMC to get to know one another, as well as to hear reports on CAM/IM members’ research and current or upcoming work projects.  Format is varied and can include presentations from practitioners outside of BMC.  See details of IM at BMC here http://www.bu.edu/integrativemed/.
  7. One Friday shift observation in the Refugee Acupuncture Clinic, housed in the Primary Care Department.
  8. One Thursday morning shift observation in the Oncology Acupuncture Clinic.

Some Additional Optional Opportunities Include:

  • Further observation in the Refugee and/or Oncology Acupuncture Clinics
  • Attending Grand Rounds in additional departments: days/times vary
  • Additional shadowing of IM physicians and/or other IM team members
  • Attending and/or contributing to an acupuncture presentation to medical residents

Electronic Medical Record (EMR)
Key to functioning in any integrative environment is facility with the electronic medical record. As with an interdisciplinary Western medical environment, in an integrative medical environment much of the integration of care occurs through the electronic medical record. Just as an internist may typically consult with an orthopedist about a patient electronically, acupuncturists and acupuncture residents interact with the Western medical staff about their patients primarily through the EMR. 

The EMR provides access to the patient’s entire BMC medical record. In addition to recording treatment notes, through the EMR acupuncture residents have the opportunity to communicate directly with Western medical providers to outline the benefits of acupuncture for the patient. Reading the EMR also exposes the acupuncture resident to the content and format of Western medical provider communication regarding patients.

As is typical within specialties, acupuncture residents see their patients apart from the Western biomedical providers. That is, they are not practicing side by side with other providers. Rather, engagement with biomedical providers occurs primarily through the forums required in this residency: the Acupuncture Team Meeting, Integrative Medicine Meeting, shadowing various providers, Department of Family Medicine Grand Rounds, etc.

Learning objectives:

  • Apply and refine communication skills with Western medical and other CAM providers
  • Gain the clinical confidence and flexibility needed to work with complex patients in an biomedical setting
  • Demonstrate understanding of the needs of a multi-cultural patient population in a major urban hospital setting
  • Gain competency in working in a Western medical setting by learning how to effectively interact with various levels of staff and by understanding hospital-based priorities, credentialing procedures, patients scheduling, etc.
  • Gain competency in electronic medical records  by becoming adept at charting in hospital-based software and accessing each patient’s complete electronic medical record
  • Participate in advanced discussion of Chinese medical theory and treatment strategies
  • Participate in integrative medicine dialogue with a diverse integrative medicine team

Application materials:

  • Completed application
  • Resume
  • Copy of current valid MA acupuncture license
  • Completed CORI Request Form
  • Proof of acupuncture malpractice insurance
  • Two letters of recommendation from either previous faculty or acupuncture employers: must be submitted by those providing the recommendation directly to NESA

Those accepted into the program must comply with the following Boston Medical Center requirements prior to beginning the residency:

  • Provide documentation of required immunizations: MMR, two TB tests: one done within 12 weeks of the residency and one done within 12 months of the residency, Varicella (chicken pox vaccine), Tetanus, Hepatitis B (must have begun the series within 20 days after beginning the residency), Flu shot 
  • Obtain a BMC ID

As NESA residencies grow and evolve over time, you may expect to see some adjustment to the above each time a residency is run.

Questions may be directed to Amy Hull, Director of Program Development, at ahull@nesa.edu or 617-558-1788 x222.