Last February, I received the opportunity to volunteer with the Center for East West Medicine (CEWM). As a member of Students for Integrative Medicine (SIM), an undergraduate organization at UCLA, I am able to learn more about different aspects of integrative medicine, such as mental wellness, traditional Chinese medicine, and lifestyle practices through guest speakers at our weekly meetings. I was excited to be able to attend a conference hosted by the Center for East West Medicine with many distinguished people in the field of East-West Medicine.These were my main takeaways from the CEWM’s conference: “Solving Chronic Pain and Related Disabling Symptoms -the East-West Way“.
The conference started with an opening from the founder of the Center for East West Medicine, Dr. Ka-Kit Hui. Dr. Hui founded CEWM in December 1993 in order to help patients through a combination of western medicine practices and traditional Chinese medicine techniques. I admired his passion in patient-oriented care and prevention and I was excited to learn more about the East-West medicine approach to patient care.
Next, Dr. Magdalena Kocot-Kepska gave a presentation on the basics on integrative medicine’s role in pain management from a global perspective and Dr. Ka-KitHui, Dr. Walter Tsang, Dr. Sungjin Kuon, and Dr. Mary Fok’s presentation on the East-West approach to treating patients with chronic pain and other disabling symptoms. I found it interesting how the East-West medicine approach differed from other forms of Western medicine and I enjoyed learning about the different applications of East-West medicine.
Following was qigong exercises led by Dr. Sara Ptsanik, covering exercises for each of the 5 elements: wood, fire, earth, metal, and water. I found qi gong to be an especially effective method of self care and I will be sure to incorporate these exercises in my daily life.
After, were the case studies of orofacial pain and treating TMJ through integrative medicine techniques by Dr. Ricky Chang and Dr. Cynthia Diep, treating lower back pain by Dr. Monika Rybicka, Dr. Kuon and Dr. Hsu, and treating fibromyalgia by Dr. Tracey Tan, Dr. Mihaela Taylor, and Dr. Helen Lavretsky. I really enjoyed these because it showed me the application of integrative medicine. I was amazed by the effectiveness of these methods and I would love to learn more about them. Some methods that they talked about to heal their patients included, acupuncture, cupping, moxibustion, TEMS, and trigger point injection.
At the end of the conference, there was a speech on ER Visits and Hospitalization by Dr. Andrew Shubov and Dr. Tracey Tan in which they discussed how East- West Medicine techniques were applied in the hospital.
The most important takeaways that I had during the conference were the exercises that I could incorporate into my own life to improve my health. Some interesting facts that I learned was wearing sunglasses in the afternoon to improve sleep, and turning off the lights 1-2 hours before bedtime in order to get the best sleep. We also learned acupoints for stress and anxiety, which I have started practicing after the conference and have helped me decrease my apprehension that I had before midterms. These acupuncture points include Large Intestine 4, Pericardium 6, and Gallbladder 21.
Overall, this conference taught me a lot about the basics and the applications of Traditional Chinese medicine, and I can’t wait to learn even more about it in the Center’s Med 185 this summer!
Sara Shimabukuro
Students for Integrative Medicine (SIM), Vice President
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