Neijing Nature-Based Medicine:
2-Year Postgraduate Mentorship Program

With Dr. Edward Neal and Faculty

NEIJING NATURE-BASED MEDICINE

FAQ’s

If your question isn’t covered below, please send us a message.

No prior qualifications are required to apply for the Online Lecture Series. However, individuals who wish to participate in clinical skills during in-person retreats such as the Clinical Practicums or other advanced clinical workshops must have legal authorization to apply needles in the jurisdiction where they practice or currently enrolled in a recognized training program (e.g. medical school). Examples of accepted medical licenses or training programs include MD, LAc, PA/FNP, ND, PT, and RN. Acceptance to the Neijing Nature-Based Medicine 2-Year Postgraduate Training Program is obtained through application.

For those who have completed the Online Lecture Series and who are authorized to apply needles, the Clinical Practicums must be completed in order. Clinical Practicum A is a prerequisite for Clinical Practicum B, and so forth. Fro example, students cannot enroll in Clinical Practicum C without first having completed Clinical Practicums A and B. The exception is by instructor permission only.

The Huangdi Neijing is the traditional source from which all of our practices and trainings are based. Neijing Nature-Based Medicine (NNBM) is a synthesis of these ideas and practices based on 20 years of Neijing classical text research. Its goal is to take ideas found in classical text research and organize them into a coherent system that can be taught, studied, and implemented in a variety of global healthcare settings. A primary principle of Neijing Nature-Based Medicine (NNBM) is that all its theories and practices are based directly on passages found in the original writings.

No prior experience or proficiency with the Chinese language or classical text is required to take this class. All that is required is a sincere desire to learn.

The primary goal of our trainings is to help students rebuild their knowledge and clinical practice through in–depth study of the original writings and principles of the profession. This involves developing a robust root of practice that will sustain our students throughout their professional life. As in nature, this root develops slowly and takes time to grow. Students who wish to learn quick techniques or who lose patience easily typically do not do well in our training. In contrast, students who have a genuine desire to learn the ideas of practice at a deeper level and are willing to participate with an engaged community over time tend to thrive. It is not required for students to have a great amount of clinical experience, speak Chinese, be versed in the medical classics or be a deep thinking scholar to succeed; all that is required is a genuine desire to study and a willingness to show up on a consistent basis. With these two things, a great amount of learning and transformation will be achieved.
Every year, we welcome a diverse group of non-medical students to our program, including Sinologists, artists, educators, and others interested in the philosophy and practices of early China. Many of these students often become some of our most engaged learners. Though a medical license is mandatory to insert needles during clinical practicums, non-medical students are welcome to participate in all other aspects of our training. Additionally, non-medical students can register at a reduced rate.

Students who cannot take the complete Neijing Nature-Based Medicine 2-Year Postgraduate Training Program in its entirety, either due to time or financial constraints, can take the in-person Clinical Practicums at any time in the future after completing the Online Lecture Series.

Yes, but we highly recommend you take both, whether in the same year or in separate years. The Online Lecture Series is the classroom lecture, and the in-person Clinical Practicums are like the lab. The in-person intensives will illuminate the learning that happens in the lectures. In addition, students wishing to enroll in Advanced Training must successfully complete the Online Lectures Series and all three Clinical Practicums in the foundational Neijing Nature-Based Medicine 2-Year Postgraduate Training Program.

The Neijing Nature-Based Medicine 2-Year Postgraduate Training Program is designed to give student practitioners a solid skill in treating conditions commonly found in primary care settings using the techniques of Neijing Nature-Based Medicine (NNBM). Specialized training to treat patients with more complex illnesses is taught in the Advanced Training program.

In the early stages of our work, we carefully evaluated whether we should pursue accreditation as a graduate training program. Ultimately, we decided against it due to the following reasons:

  1. The accreditation process is time-consuming, which would divert our attention from classical text research and teaching.
  2. Accreditation would require teaching a significant amount of curriculum that is not relevant to our work.

By not seeking accreditation, we can focus directly on studying and teaching classical text material.

However, in the United States, our courses are accredited by the NCCAOM®  for Professional Development Activity credit and by the California Acupuncture Board for Continuing Education, which includes continuing education. For online lectures, whether live or recorded, students must sign into the online classroom and complete a post-lecture quiz with a score of 75% or better to receive credit. For onsite clinical training, participants must sign in daily to receive credit.

Yes, starting with the 2025/2027 Cohort the Neijing Nature-Based Medicine 2 Year Postgraduate Mentorship Training is certified with the California Acupuncture Board.

Please note that the California Acupuncture Board requires that all live classes be attended in full in order to receive any credits for the live lectures throughout the semester. Watching recordings of the live classes is not accepted. In order to maximize potential credits we have divided up this portion of the certification; however, the number of credits received will be reflective of your attendance to live zoom lectures.

The California Acupuncture Board does still work with certificates. You will be sent a PDF CEU certificate that you then submit to the CAP on your own.

Those who successfully complete the Neijing Nature-Based Medicine 2-Year Postgraduate Mentorship Training Program (Online Lecture Series + 3 Clinical Practicums) are eligible to receive a Certificate of Completion for the full program.

Likewise, those who successfully complete the Online Lectures Series (only, without the Clinical Practicums) are eligible to receive a Certification of Completion for that portion of the program.

This professional Certificate of Completion does not offer confer any additional practice capacity in any jurisdiction.

Students who encounter unexpected life circumstances such as family issues or illness, can apply for a leave of absence. If approved, they can withdraw from a course and then return to a future course at the point they withdrew, pending space availability. We do not offer refunds after 15 days before a course begins. Read more about Withdrawal and Refund Policies.

Our online content is available to students around the world. In the past, in-person Clinical Practicums were taught in various locations. This changed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. We are hoping to reinstate international teaching soon but for the 2026-28 program, all Clinical Practicums are held in the United States.

All course material (except what is taught at the in-person Clinical Practicums) is made available as online recorded lectures, PDFs, and audio files.

All students are given a 3-month extension after the last class to review streaming recorded video material and get their PDAs, CEUs, and/or Certificate of Completion.

Following the 3-month extension period, students may register for an additional 1-year extension period, which includes access to the Sunday class discussions in the next year’s course. There is a cost for the maintaining access to the course materials for the additional 1 year extension.

Please note that the course officially closes after the 3-month extension period. Quizzes and other certification materials are not available after that time. All work for PDA/CEU certification and Certificate of Completion must be finished by the end of the 3-month extension period.

Onsite in-person Clinical Practicums are held in three residential seven-day sessions. In the United States sessions are held in Washington State (near Portland, Oregon).

Note due to COVID-19 pandemic and other logistical issues with travel since then, retreats outside the United States are currently on hold. Learn more about the Clinical Practicums here ››