Clipping Board » Medical Myths ─ The truth about healthcare is often different from what you intuitively think.
May 5, 2018
Author: Dr. Phoebe / Observations from a Little Dentist
This is a Chinese neighborhood in Los Angeles. I walked into an inconspicuous clinic with dull walls and old carpets—clearly, the decor style had been frozen in time for decades. The walls were adorned with paintings, from landscapes to animals, each one strikingly lifelike and eye-catching.
Though the aesthetic taste was questionable, and the clinic had barely been open for an hour, the waiting room was already packed with patients.
I had assumed that in this Chinese neighborhood clinic, over 90% of the patients would be East Asian. But upon closer inspection, I realized I was wrong—not all the patients had black hair and yellow skin. White, Mexican, and Indian patients made up at least half of the crowd.
I filled out forms at the front desk. Today, I was visiting the clinic as a patient rather than a doctor, primarily because Western medicine couldn’t diagnose my health issues.
Before coming to this clinic, I had undergone numerous medical tests, all of which yielded no results. Western doctors were stumped, with no answers to offer. Left with no other options, I turned to a Chinese medicine practitioner in the U.S.
**My First Time Seeing a TCM Doctor in the U.S. as an Adult**
Don’t let the clinic’s appearance fool you. Surprisingly, this place was incredibly popular—so much so that even securing an appointment was a challenge. The clinic only accepted cash, and even if you showed up in person, they wouldn’t let you book on the spot. Instead, they opened a half-day "appointment hotline" every Saturday for phone reservations. (And no, the hotline wasn’t "0800-092-000"... the famous Taiwanese TCM commercial jingle.)
In any case, I called 55 times, only to get a busy signal each time. When the 56th call finally went through, I felt like I’d hit the jackpot.
Having lived in the U.S. for many years, this was my first time seeing a TCM doctor as an adult. The practitioner had graying hair, wore cool glasses, and had loud rock music playing in the background. With practiced ease, he began checking my pulse, examining my tongue, ears, palms, and more. Then something miraculous happened—
It was as if he were an X-ray machine, accurately recounting my years of medical history, completely aligning with the diagnoses from my Western doctors. Beyond that, he straightforwardly assessed the conditions of organs that Western medicine hadn’t thoroughly examined. Even my temperament and daily mood couldn’t escape his diagnosis.
After the consultation, he prescribed a bottle of herbal medicine tailored to my condition, intended for a month-long treatment.
**My Western Medicine-Trained Husband’s Skepticism: "What’s in the Medicine? Is the Treatment Evidence-Based?"**
I brought the herbal medicine home and shared my experience with my Western medicine-trained husband, only to be met with an eye roll.
He asked me, "Do you even know what’s inside this bottle?" I admitted I didn’t, but I was utterly convinced by the doctor’s uncanny accuracy. No Western doctor had ever analyzed my health so precisely and thoroughly.
But to my husband, raised in the world of Western medicine, all of this remained dubious. After all, Western medicine demands evidence, scientific validation, and EBM (Evidence-Based Medicine). Without that, in his eyes, any TCM treatment was no different from the unverified pills and potions peddled in infomercials.
To this day, I still don’t know what exactly was in that herbal medicine. But what I do know is this: after following the TCM doctor’s prescription, my symptoms improved completely, yielding excellent results.Finally, even my Western medicine-trained husband was amazed and had to admit that, in terms of the final outcome of this "PK," it was the millennia-old wisdom of Chinese ancestors that defeated Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine.
### The Division of Labor System Upholds the Globally Dominant Western Medical System
It must be said that Western medicine carries a certain sense of superiority, especially American medicine, which emphasizes "specialization in one's field": the human body is divided into different parts—heart issues go to cardiology, sprained limbs to orthopedics, mood disorders to psychiatry, and so on.
Among specialties, there is also an unwritten rule: one must not overstep the bounds of "another specialty's expertise." For example, a dentist cannot casually diagnose gastroenteritis, nor can a gastroenterologist answer questions about neurology medications. Unless it relates to their own specialty, patients must be referred to the appropriate specialist.
Beyond the aforementioned rationale of professional division, this also serves to protect doctors themselves—because if a physician's advice strays beyond their expertise and leads to a misdiagnosis, patients can sue afterward.
Thus, in the U.S. and the Western medical systems we’ve grown accustomed to worldwide, specialties often operate under the principle of "each minding their own business." Doctors uphold professionalism by delving deeper into research and clinical practice within their own fields, collectively sustaining the entire Western medical system over time.
This system certainly has its merits. Like screws deeply understanding their own positions, it ensures patients receive the most specialized advice for whichever specialty they visit. However, in real-world patient scenarios, one of the biggest issues is that, after consulting multiple specialists, the root cause often remains elusive or symptoms fail to improve:
Because each specialty, after conducting its own tests, frequently "passes the buck" to other specialties—as long as their own area checks out fine or the issue is deemed "another specialty's problem," they’ve fulfilled their duty to the patient (and the law).
Yet, when a patient’s symptoms persist despite bouncing between multiple specialties, the psychological toll is significant, not to mention the financial strain from high medical bills.
### The Changing Perception of Western Medicine’s Superiority
Under such a system in the U.S., more and more people are turning to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)—or, to put it politically correctly, Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) (since in the U.S., "traditional medicine" refers to Western medicine, while TCM is classified as "alternative").
Many major American hospitals, such as Mayo Clinic, UCSD, Duke Medical Center, and even large VA systems (equivalent to Taiwan’s Veterans Hospitals), have begun incorporating TCM as one of the treatment options for patients.
According to a US News report, 30% of Americans are now open to these alternative treatments, including acupuncture, massage, cupping, and herbal medicine. A study by UCSD also found that acupuncture significantly aids in alleviating symptoms of 20 types of depression, hypertension, and heart disease.
Often, these alternative treatments are combined with conventional (Western) medicine to provide patients with the best integrative outcomes. For instance, a 2014 study showed that infertility patients who underwent Western surgical treatments alongside TCM had far better results than those who relied solely on Western interventions.A practicing traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioner in Virginia also pointed out that 90% of her patients are non-Asian, most of whom sought TCM for untreatable chronic pain and saw improvement. (Incidentally, chronic pain is a major healthcare issue in the U.S. and one of the primary causes of the current opioid crisis.)
**The Complementary Nature of Chinese and Western Medicine: More Possibilities Ahead**
Another reason for the growing popularity of "non-traditional medical treatments" in the U.S. is their affordability.
When I visited a Western doctor, I had excellent PPO insurance that covered most tests and some treatments—though not 100%, only about 60-80%, with the rest paid out-of-pocket. Given the high cost of Western medical care in the U.S., I was grateful not to pay the full amount.
But when I visited a TCM practitioner, the clinic only accepted cash and no insurance. Yet, the consultation fee plus a month’s worth of herbal medicine cost only one-fifth of a Western doctor’s visit—not to mention additional tests. Unsurprisingly, even with insurance, my expenses for Western medicine far exceeded those for TCM.
This is also reflected in the salaries of TCM practitioners in the U.S.: Statistics show that the average annual salary for a licensed TCM practitioner is $73,412 (approximately NT$2.186 million), while an acupuncturist earns $48,735 (about NT$1.485 million). This pales in comparison to the starting salary of a Western doctor, which is at least $156,000 (around NT$4.645 million).
For American patients, TCM may never replace Western medicine in their minds. However, with over 27,000 licensed acupuncturists in the U.S., many patients are now willing to pay a small fee to try TCM if Western medicine fails to address their issues.
The Western medical system in the U.S. is highly mature and robust, and I don’t believe TCM will replace it anytime soon. Yet, interestingly, the relationship between Chinese and Western medicine in the U.S. has gradually shifted from opposition to complementarity—a subtle change driven by the mindset of "if it helps the patient, why not?" This shift is evident in the acceptance of "complementary therapies" and efforts to scientize TCM.
Still, I believe TCM will always have its place in the U.S. Ultimately, it comes down to what’s known as "the wisdom of our ancestors." As Dr. David Miller, a Chicago-based physician licensed in both Western pediatrics and TCM, puts it: "TCM itself is essentially a 2,500-year-long clinical trial." Western medicine may not yet fully explain why "TCM" or "Chinese herbs" work—
But for many patients, the question is simple: As long as it works, that’s enough.※This article is authorized for publication by the Crossing website. The original title is "As a Western Medicine Student, My First Experience with Chinese Medicine in the U.S.: 'As Long as It Benefits the Patient, Why Not?' in the Evolving 'Traditional Medicine'." Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.
Source: https:/ / tw. news. yahoo. com/ % E……85% E4% BA% BA- 2- 235459637. html
As A Western Medicine Student, My First TCM Experience in the US: "If It Helps Patients, Why Not?"
Author: Dr. Phoebe / Observations from a Little Dentist
This is a Chinese neighborhood in Los Angeles. I walked into an inconspicuous clinic with dull walls and old carpets—clearly, the decor style had been frozen in time for decades. The walls were adorned with paintings, from landscapes to animals, each one strikingly lifelike and eye-catching.
Though the aesthetic taste was questionable, and the clinic had barely been open for an hour, the waiting room was already packed with patients.
I had assumed that in this Chinese neighborhood clinic, over 90% of the patients would be East Asian. But upon closer inspection, I realized I was wrong—not all the patients had black hair and yellow skin. White, Mexican, and Indian patients made up at least half of the crowd.
I filled out forms at the front desk. Today, I was visiting the clinic as a patient rather than a doctor, primarily because Western medicine couldn’t diagnose my health issues.
Before coming to this clinic, I had undergone numerous medical tests, all of which yielded no results. Western doctors were stumped, with no answers to offer. Left with no other options, I turned to a Chinese medicine practitioner in the U.S.
**My First Time Seeing a TCM Doctor in the U.S. as an Adult**
Don’t let the clinic’s appearance fool you. Surprisingly, this place was incredibly popular—so much so that even securing an appointment was a challenge. The clinic only accepted cash, and even if you showed up in person, they wouldn’t let you book on the spot. Instead, they opened a half-day "appointment hotline" every Saturday for phone reservations. (And no, the hotline wasn’t "0800-092-000"... the famous Taiwanese TCM commercial jingle.)
In any case, I called 55 times, only to get a busy signal each time. When the 56th call finally went through, I felt like I’d hit the jackpot.
Having lived in the U.S. for many years, this was my first time seeing a TCM doctor as an adult. The practitioner had graying hair, wore cool glasses, and had loud rock music playing in the background. With practiced ease, he began checking my pulse, examining my tongue, ears, palms, and more. Then something miraculous happened—
It was as if he were an X-ray machine, accurately recounting my years of medical history, completely aligning with the diagnoses from my Western doctors. Beyond that, he straightforwardly assessed the conditions of organs that Western medicine hadn’t thoroughly examined. Even my temperament and daily mood couldn’t escape his diagnosis.
After the consultation, he prescribed a bottle of herbal medicine tailored to my condition, intended for a month-long treatment.
**My Western Medicine-Trained Husband’s Skepticism: "What’s in the Medicine? Is the Treatment Evidence-Based?"**
I brought the herbal medicine home and shared my experience with my Western medicine-trained husband, only to be met with an eye roll.
He asked me, "Do you even know what’s inside this bottle?" I admitted I didn’t, but I was utterly convinced by the doctor’s uncanny accuracy. No Western doctor had ever analyzed my health so precisely and thoroughly.
But to my husband, raised in the world of Western medicine, all of this remained dubious. After all, Western medicine demands evidence, scientific validation, and EBM (Evidence-Based Medicine). Without that, in his eyes, any TCM treatment was no different from the unverified pills and potions peddled in infomercials.
To this day, I still don’t know what exactly was in that herbal medicine. But what I do know is this: after following the TCM doctor’s prescription, my symptoms improved completely, yielding excellent results.Finally, even my Western medicine-trained husband was amazed and had to admit that, in terms of the final outcome of this "PK," it was the millennia-old wisdom of Chinese ancestors that defeated Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine.
### The Division of Labor System Upholds the Globally Dominant Western Medical System
It must be said that Western medicine carries a certain sense of superiority, especially American medicine, which emphasizes "specialization in one's field": the human body is divided into different parts—heart issues go to cardiology, sprained limbs to orthopedics, mood disorders to psychiatry, and so on.
Among specialties, there is also an unwritten rule: one must not overstep the bounds of "another specialty's expertise." For example, a dentist cannot casually diagnose gastroenteritis, nor can a gastroenterologist answer questions about neurology medications. Unless it relates to their own specialty, patients must be referred to the appropriate specialist.
Beyond the aforementioned rationale of professional division, this also serves to protect doctors themselves—because if a physician's advice strays beyond their expertise and leads to a misdiagnosis, patients can sue afterward.
Thus, in the U.S. and the Western medical systems we’ve grown accustomed to worldwide, specialties often operate under the principle of "each minding their own business." Doctors uphold professionalism by delving deeper into research and clinical practice within their own fields, collectively sustaining the entire Western medical system over time.
This system certainly has its merits. Like screws deeply understanding their own positions, it ensures patients receive the most specialized advice for whichever specialty they visit. However, in real-world patient scenarios, one of the biggest issues is that, after consulting multiple specialists, the root cause often remains elusive or symptoms fail to improve:
Because each specialty, after conducting its own tests, frequently "passes the buck" to other specialties—as long as their own area checks out fine or the issue is deemed "another specialty's problem," they’ve fulfilled their duty to the patient (and the law).
Yet, when a patient’s symptoms persist despite bouncing between multiple specialties, the psychological toll is significant, not to mention the financial strain from high medical bills.
### The Changing Perception of Western Medicine’s Superiority
Under such a system in the U.S., more and more people are turning to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)—or, to put it politically correctly, Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) (since in the U.S., "traditional medicine" refers to Western medicine, while TCM is classified as "alternative").
Many major American hospitals, such as Mayo Clinic, UCSD, Duke Medical Center, and even large VA systems (equivalent to Taiwan’s Veterans Hospitals), have begun incorporating TCM as one of the treatment options for patients.
According to a US News report, 30% of Americans are now open to these alternative treatments, including acupuncture, massage, cupping, and herbal medicine. A study by UCSD also found that acupuncture significantly aids in alleviating symptoms of 20 types of depression, hypertension, and heart disease.
Often, these alternative treatments are combined with conventional (Western) medicine to provide patients with the best integrative outcomes. For instance, a 2014 study showed that infertility patients who underwent Western surgical treatments alongside TCM had far better results than those who relied solely on Western interventions.A practicing traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioner in Virginia also pointed out that 90% of her patients are non-Asian, most of whom sought TCM for untreatable chronic pain and saw improvement. (Incidentally, chronic pain is a major healthcare issue in the U.S. and one of the primary causes of the current opioid crisis.)
**The Complementary Nature of Chinese and Western Medicine: More Possibilities Ahead**
Another reason for the growing popularity of "non-traditional medical treatments" in the U.S. is their affordability.
When I visited a Western doctor, I had excellent PPO insurance that covered most tests and some treatments—though not 100%, only about 60-80%, with the rest paid out-of-pocket. Given the high cost of Western medical care in the U.S., I was grateful not to pay the full amount.
But when I visited a TCM practitioner, the clinic only accepted cash and no insurance. Yet, the consultation fee plus a month’s worth of herbal medicine cost only one-fifth of a Western doctor’s visit—not to mention additional tests. Unsurprisingly, even with insurance, my expenses for Western medicine far exceeded those for TCM.
This is also reflected in the salaries of TCM practitioners in the U.S.: Statistics show that the average annual salary for a licensed TCM practitioner is $73,412 (approximately NT$2.186 million), while an acupuncturist earns $48,735 (about NT$1.485 million). This pales in comparison to the starting salary of a Western doctor, which is at least $156,000 (around NT$4.645 million).
For American patients, TCM may never replace Western medicine in their minds. However, with over 27,000 licensed acupuncturists in the U.S., many patients are now willing to pay a small fee to try TCM if Western medicine fails to address their issues.
The Western medical system in the U.S. is highly mature and robust, and I don’t believe TCM will replace it anytime soon. Yet, interestingly, the relationship between Chinese and Western medicine in the U.S. has gradually shifted from opposition to complementarity—a subtle change driven by the mindset of "if it helps the patient, why not?" This shift is evident in the acceptance of "complementary therapies" and efforts to scientize TCM.
Still, I believe TCM will always have its place in the U.S. Ultimately, it comes down to what’s known as "the wisdom of our ancestors." As Dr. David Miller, a Chicago-based physician licensed in both Western pediatrics and TCM, puts it: "TCM itself is essentially a 2,500-year-long clinical trial." Western medicine may not yet fully explain why "TCM" or "Chinese herbs" work—
But for many patients, the question is simple: As long as it works, that’s enough.※This article is authorized for publication by the Crossing website. The original title is "As a Western Medicine Student, My First Experience with Chinese Medicine in the U.S.: 'As Long as It Benefits the Patient, Why Not?' in the Evolving 'Traditional Medicine'." Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.
Source: https:/ / tw. news. yahoo. com/ % E……85% E4% BA% BA- 2- 235459637. html