Beginning in July 2017, the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM®) will be conducting an online survey to gather opinions and job-related information from licensed acupuncturists throughout the U.S.

The survey is part of a research-based job analysis (JA) study to define and update a core set of competencies, skills, and performance expectations that result in safe and effective acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine practice.

Defining these core competencies and job tasks is critical for public protection and growth of the profession, and is central to the NCCAOM's mission which is:

To assure the safety and well-being of the public and to advance the professional practice of acupuncture and Oriental medicine by establishing and promoting national evidence-based standards of competence and credentialing.

In pursuit of these goals, the NCCAOM operates three nationally-accredited programs for AOM practitioner's certification in Acupuncture, Chinese Herbology and Oriental Medicine.

Professional Achievement

Earning certification and becoming a diplomate of the NCCAOM represents a significant professional achievement and makes an important statement about professional competence that is recognized by regulatory bodies, third-party payers, the profession, and the public.

Diplomate status indicates to employers, patients, and peers that one has met national standards for the safe and competent practice of acupuncture as defined by the profession.

One milestone to achieving diplomate status is for candidates to pass competency-based examinations which measure knowledge of:

• Foundations of Oriental Medicine
• Biomedicine
• Acupuncture
• Chinese Herbology

National board certification is a mark of excellence in acupuncture, and to maintain this high standard the certifying examinations must remain current and include only knowledge, skills, and abilities that are job-relevant, important, frequently used, and common to practice of all licensed acupuncturists in the U.S.

Your response to the upcoming survey is critical to ensure the content of the NCCAOM certifying examinations accurately reflects what acupuncturists do on-the-job. This information is also critical to differentiate licensed acupuncturists from other healthcare professionals that perform acupuncture techniques or practice Chinese herbal medicine.

What is  JA Study?

A JA study is the foundation of a defensible professional certification program, establishing the link between test scores achieved on the NCCAOM certifying examinations and the core competencies all licensed acupuncturists must possess.

A successful JA study results in exam content that is relevant, fair, and appropriate, which in turn leads to a legally-defensible, high-quality certification program.

In the fall of 2016, the NCCAOM formed a JA Panel comprised of a diverse group of licensed acupuncturists representing various educational and experience backgrounds from throughout the country.

The Panel's work was facilitated by the NCCAOM's CEO and experts in test development and psychometrics. To date the following steps have been completed:

• Literature search – Review of topical information about the role including approved texts and other materials from training programs, secondary educators, and continuing education providers, job descriptions, curricula, and core rules, regulations, and laws.
• Linkage study – Comparative review between the content of the NCCAOM exams and the results of the 2015 California Acupuncture Board's (CAB) Occupational Analysis.
• Interviews – Phone interviews were conducted with licensed acupuncturists to establish a practice profile representing the diversity of the AOM profession.
• Focus group – The literature search and interview findings were used to develop an exhaustive list of core AOM competencies. This list was presented to the Panel for review and approval during a two-day meeting. The list was then converted into survey format.

The online JA survey will be launched in July, and will be available until a large and representative sample of licensed acupuncturists have responded. Then, the following steps will be taken to prepare for final decisions by the panel:

• Survey analyses – Exhaustive data analyses will be conducted to determine the adequacy, reliability, and representativeness of the survey responses. Each core knowledge element will be analyzed to determine how often it is applied and/or performed by acupuncturists, and how important the element is to public protection and competent, effective practice.
• Decision-making – The Panel will reconvene via focus group to review the survey results and update the content outlines for the certifying examinations. All survey results will be aggregated, and at no time will any individual responses be shared.

Following the decision-making focus group, the results from the survey and the entire job analysis process will be published to the NCCAOM website. All respondents will be able to see the results of their valuable contribution to the acupuncturist profession.

What will the survey look like?

The survey contains five sections. Section 1 is a demographic questionnaire. This information will allow the NCCAOM to develop a profile of licensed acupuncturists, how they practice, and the environments in which they practice. Demographic information also indicates whether the received survey responses represent the diversity of the profession.

Sections 2–5 ask respondents to provide frequency and importance ratings for the core knowledge elements required for competent practice in Foundations of Oriental Medicine, Biomedicine, Acupuncture with Point Location, and Chinese Herbology.

Participants will be presented with a list of core knowledge elements and asked if they perform the task or use the knowledge in their practice, and if so, how important it is to competent, effective AOM practice that protects the public.

Why should I participate?

The survey will take 1–1.5 hours to complete (bookmarking will be available so that the entire survey will not have to be answered in one seating).

The NCCAOM recognizes that this is a considerable time commitment. As a small token of appreciation for respondents' time, all NCCAOM diplomates will receive two PDA points for each of the four rating sections completed.

Win an iPad Mini

In addition, all respondents, regardless of diplomate status, will have the opportunity to enter a drawing for a chance to win 1 of 4 iPad minis.

The optional contact information provided for these incentives will not be kept on file, will not be connected to individual survey responses, and will not be used for any other purpose besides to contact respondents regarding the PDA points and/or iPad minis.

The NCCAOM needs the participation of as many licensed acupuncturists as possible to help ensure that the survey results reflect the diversity of AOM practice.

It is critical that we receive an adequate number of respondents representing the U.S. population of acupuncturists.

All AOM practitioners across the spectrum of years of experience, practice settings, and geographic locations are encouraged to contribute their voice to this process.

If you would like to receive an invitation to participate in the survey or have questions about the JA study or NCCAOM certification, please contact us at .

Dr. Kory Ward-Cook has over 35 years of experience as a medical laboratory professional, educator, and executive in association management. She is a Certified Association Executive (CAE) and currently serves as the CEO Emeritus of the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM). she served as NCCAOM CEO from 2004-2019.

Dr. Rachael Jin Bee Tan has 10 years of experience serving as a psychometrician and statistical consultant for dozens of professional certification and licensing organizations. She currently oversees the NCCAOM certifying examinations and processes.