Newsletter: September, 2021

Featured: The Role of TCM & Acupuncture in US Healthcare 

Nourish your passion

Special Zoom Event: Sept. 23 at 5PM Pacific Time

  • Part I: Panel Discussion of The Web That Has No Weaver (30 minutes)
  • Part II: How our Santa Cruz Clinic Helps Address the Opioid Crisis (30 minutes)
  • Part III: Our Alumni Share their Career Journeys, and Answer Questions (30 minutes)

A New Cohort Starts at Five Branches University

The picture above was taken before the pandemic, Five Branches University currently requires all students, teachers, and staff to wear a face mask on campus.
Greetings to all new students joining us now for Fall 2021 in Santa Cruz, San Jose, and online.

During virtual orientation, faculty and staff commended you for deciding to pursue Chinese medicine and acupuncture; and reminded you that this course of study will require resilience, courage, and innovation. You’ve already taken the first crucial step, and we are here to guide you through.

Also at orientation, you heard a lot about the Five Branches’ open-door policy, and we encourage you to email your administrators and professors your questions. We are in this together with you, as you focus your energy and passion on a future in TCM.

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Maintaining the Health of Your Finances

There are numerous crucial reasons for practitioners to provide positive experiences for their patients; of course it is part of our mission, and assists with healing. But did you know that positive patient experiences are associated with increased profitability for practices, and negative patient experiences are even more strongly associated with decreased profitability?

As it happens, negative word-of-mouth about a hospital or health system could result in revenue losses up to $400,000 over one patient’s lifetime (Blackman, Michael. “The Link Between Financial Success and Patient Satisfaction.” (Blackman, Michael. “The Link Between Financial Success and Patient Satisfaction.” Medical Economics, July 2021, pp. 14-15).

Here are a few tips Medical Economics offers practitioners (and if you yourself are a patient, seek out these aspects in your health care providers).
Providers should:

  • Emphasize the patient’s input and involvement in the healing process
  • Make a good first impression by ensuring one’s digital presence is easy to navigate
  • Regularly share trusted and credible tips on social media 
  • Add virtual visits for convenience 
  • Allow patients to contact the practice in multiple ways (over half of all patients prefer to text/email/use a portal, rather than telephone their provider)
  • All that being said, focus on the patient during the session, not technology

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