AIMC: Daoist Chinese Medicine
By Taj Moore

Medical Qigong therapy, like Taijiquan (Tai Chi), has been proven effective in the treatment of high blood pressure, depression, chronic illness, and a variety of other ailments. It includes physical therapy exercises, stress management and relaxation techniques, and external qi healing (therapeutic touch).

The purpose of AIMC Berkeley is to promote health, harmony, and wellness through the education and therapeutic treatment of members of its community by training and educating successful practitioners of Oriental medicine.

Dr. Suzanne Friedman joined AIMC Berkeley in May 2005 to start up its new Medical Qigong Practitioner program. AIMC Berkeley will become the first acupuncture college in the San Francisco Bay Area to initiate such a program. Skye Sturgeon, AIMC Berkeley President, expressed his enthusiasm, "This development re-introduces the ancient Taoist energetic and spiritual foundations of Chinese Medicine that are rarely being taught today."

Dr. Friedman, a licensed acupuncturist, received her doctorate degree in Medical Qigong Oncology from the Beijing Medical Qigong & TCM Research Institute in Beijing, China. "Medical Qigong Therapy is a form of energy healing based on Chinese Medicine principles, but does not require prior Chinese Medicine training to master," stated Dr. Friedman.

Students will gain clinical experience throughout the program in the new medical qigong clinic, an extension of the AIMC Berkeley Community Clinic. Patients of the clinic will gain in the added health care options this brings to the Community Clinic. The four-module program is open to students and practitioners of acupuncture, bodywork, and physical therapy, healthcare providers, and others with a strong interest in healing arts.