Thomas’ Acupuncture Clinic
It is now 30 years since I opened my little clinic in this also little town. By reputation my clinic – and me – are somewhat “unusual”.
“Clinic without a menu” … what does that mean?
Since its opening my clinic has always been a “clinic without a menu”.
It seems to be a characteristic of modern trends, that every clinic (other than specialized medical clinics) uses some sort of “menu”: treatment time is measured in units of 5 or 10 minutes and the associated treatment fees too are indicated in small, sometimes even 5 Yen increments (I have seen such menus!).
When a certain treatment modality XXX is added to the basic treatment, this goes then along with extra charges for that particular technique. Or else, when the originally planned treatment time is exceeded, the patient is charged with XXX money for the “extra time”.
I am sure, this is considered “normal” business practice. However, I DO NOT agree to this line of thinking.
People visiting my (or any other) clinic are by definition “people”, who “suffer” form some “disease”. THAT is what the Japanese word for “patient” expresses. Or they are “ill” – by definition the opposite of “well”.
These people are NOT just a collection of detachable parts: If somebody complains about trouble with his/her knee(s), treating ONLY the knees is like the work done in some repair shop. If the same person has muscle problems, s/he has to go to a different repair shop. The workers in the individual repair shops check/fix ONLY the “parts” they are specialized in. Thus, they loose the overview over the particular machinery to which the particular part belongs.
Oriental medicine is supposed to take care of WHOLE persons
Experts involved in the care of people suffering from diseases are supposed to take care of “PEOPLE“. This is not only a doctrine of oriental medicine, but has also be proclaimed by the ancient Greek Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine. Reluctantly considering myself a craftsman working in the field of traditional medicine, I run a clinic where there is no menu. How can there be a menu, when I am supposed to (trying to!) look after = care for whole individuals that are totally unique on this planet?
If possible, I strive to alleviate the suffering of my patients as quickly as possible and with whatever means appears to be indicated (and within the scope of my profession) and do not specify a treatment time. Using all techniques at my disposal I consider necessary and mostly examining the whole body, always leads to quite extended treatment sessions. But I have never charged any kind of surcharge for as long as I am working as an acupuncturist. And I certainly do NOT intend to change my stance in this matter.
I Do have a list of prices in my waiting room, showing the fees for THE treatment, initial fee, moxa etc.
View from the treatment room into the waiting room of my clinic
“In the first half of our lives, we sacrifice our health to gain money;
Very true indeed!
in the second half we sacrifice our money to regain our health.”
Voltaire (1694-1778)
~~ Hashtags ~~
鍼 #針 #鍼灸 #鍼灸院 #治療院 #老舗 #東洋医学 #伝統 #職人 #葉山 #逗子 #おきゅう #肩凝り #腰痛 #眼精疲労 #全身疲労 #難病 #履歴 #歴史 #自伝 #お話 #ドイツ人 #ドイツ人鍼灸師 #トーマス #トーマス鍼灸院 #鍼灸師 #英語 #ドイツ語 #用語集 #翻訳 #通訳 #低所得者 #丁寧 #説明 #問診 #書籍 #ピアノ #音楽 #レッソン #弓道 #須原耕雲 #禅 #仏教 #円覚寺 #弓 #自伝 #翻訳 #acupuncture #moxibustion #clinic #English #EnglishSpeaking #German #Deutsch #ManSprichtDeutsch #Hayama #Zushi #StiffShoulders #LowBackPain #SystemicDiseases #LowIncome #alternativetherapy #holistic #holisticmedicine #interview #personlized #books #translation #Übersetzungen #interpretation #dolmetschen #glossary #oriental #medicine #books #recommended #therapy #opinion #choice #human #values #piano #lesson #music #kyudo #zen #Buddhism #priest #Suhara Koun #Engakuji #Enma# #dojo #Akupunktur #Moxibustion #Behandlung #Klinik #Kreuzschmerzen #AllgemeineKrankheiten #KeineBesserung #Klavierstunden #Musik #Bogenschießen #Priester #traditionellemedizin #Buch~~ Hashtags ~~
