Experienced Practitioners
In China, old doctors are revered because it is only through a lifetime of practice that one gains wisdom and experience.
Today in the west, most practitioners of Chinese medicine open a practice right out of school, without residency under a skilled and experienced clinician. This would never happen in China, where every student is required to complete years of mentorship under an advanced level practitioner. It is a sad state of affairs that Chinese medicine schools are for profit organizations, churning out doctorate level students excited to practice medicine without the real skillset to do so safely and effectively. Thus, Chinese medicine has a reputation that it takes a long time, patients do not get better and neither practitioner or patient really knows what to expect from treatments. The truth is, Chinese medicine is not hard to learn, and is not hard to practice. It is not an esoteric practice of tapping in needles and letting a patient rest while they listen to Enya. The true practice of medicine in any field deals with life and death situations. It must do more help than har, and must be taught in real life clinical situations for it to be understood and applied deftly. Our clinic aims to prove there is a difference when an experienced hand applies the tools and concepts of Chinese medicine with common sense and clarity whether for wellness or serious conditions. We aim to teach the public how effective and tangible Chinese medicine can be, we hope each client learns to be discerning in health care, and we aim to teach our colleagues how to truly understand and apply what they learned in school for repeatable and consistent results.
Andrew and JulieAnn Nugent-Head spent a combined 36 years in China studying directly under the last old doctors of Beijing. Through this rare mentor – disciple training, doctoral studies in the Chinese University system, and residency in the hospitals of Beijing and Hangzhou, JulieAnn and Andrew have seen more patients, treatments and Chinese herbal prescriptions than most western practitioners will see in their lifetime. This unparalleled experience is incredible, and they chose to live right here in beautiful Western North Carolina. With fluency in written and spoken Chinese, and a dedication to teach others how to achieve the same tangible and effective results, there is no better choice for your care than this dedicated team of professionals.