Mongolia
Our Work
In 2010 Acupuncturists Without Borders brought a World Healing Exchange trip to Mongolia. On this trip, AWB volunteers met local doctors struggling to address the disease of alcoholism which is rampant in Mongolia.
These medical professionals asked AWB to return and provide training that would help them support addiction recovery in programs throughout Mongolia. In 2013, then AWB Board President Carla Cassler (now Associate Director) returned to Mongolia with a team of volunteers to train 75 Mongolian doctors. As a result of this training, ear acupuncture for alcohol addiction has been integrated into the Mongolian National Mental Health Centre as an ongoing therapy.
For more information about our Mongolia program, please contact AWB Associate Director, Carla Cassler, director@acuwithoutborders.org.
AWB trainer Brigid Ting and AWB Associate Director Carla Cassler training doctors in the Mongolia National Mental Health Centre, 2013 Photo Credit: Meg McDowell
Program Update 2018
In 2018 AWB volunteer and member Rebekah Kanter spent part of the summer training acupuncturists, doctors and other health professionals to provide addiction and trauma reduction treatments in Mongolian hospitals and clinics. Below is her report:
Week One
We did a clinic for the staff at the cancer hospital in Ulan Bataar. They were so enthusiastic that they asked us to come back to do the NADA protocol in the chemo ward, the rehab ward, and again for the staff, weekly. At the end of that week I did an almost whole day presentation and training for Traditional Medical students at the medical school. After the training, all the students got to practice point location, and although there were about 70 students there, I managed to check all of their points. They all got certificates.
Week Two
We visited the Traditional Medicine Hospital. Can you believe they have a hospital for administering the kind of medicine we learn?!?! It’s amazing. People love to go there because they get such comfortable treatment. We did a clinic for the students. Those who wanted could stay and I did a short hour-long presentation about the NADA protocol…I think they were excited about adopting the NADA protocol into their hospital treatment protocols. We had hoped to go to the cancer hospital last week but there was a schedule conflict so it was postponed until week 3. We also did a clinic for the staff at the medical school.
Week 3
Today we did get to the cancer hospital. We treated patients who were in the process of receiving chemo. I have to tell you, that was really profound. It was the idea of one of the staff who had attended the clinic at the cancer hospital the first week. What a great idea! I asked her if she would ask the patients when they come back if their post-chemo experience was different after receiving the NADA treatment. She asked them as they were leaving today. One patient said that she felt much more optimistic. Another said that she felt her being expand, that she could finally relax and breathe. I’m pretty much blown away by how powerful that is! I think this would be a great avenue to pursue further, if only hospitals would allow it. Tomorrow we are going to the Mental Health Hospital. We will do a clinic for the psychiatrists and I will prepare a short presentation for MD’s which we will present following the clinic.
Header Photo by Prof. Mortel on Foter.com / CC BY