05/02/2023
"Doctor Felicia" certainly has a nice ring to it.
No, I haven't completed an extra doctorate. Our regulatory body, the College of Acupuncturists of Alberta, has recently updated our permits to reflect our new titles granted to us when our profession became regulated as of January 1, 2022.
What does it mean to be regulated? To gain this designation, the entirety of a profession in a province must appoint a single governing body that is recognized by the provincial government to enforce ethical, competency, and safety standards among its members. This is all in an effort to protect the public (our patients).
The government also grants exclusive use of certain titles to the members of the College. In our case these titles include Acupuncturist, Doctor of Acupuncture, D.Ac., Ac,. R.Ac.. You can be assured as a patient in Alberta that the only professionals using these titles have completed rigorous training and testing to be performing this service.
Members are also legally required to display this permit in their office. If you are wondering about a practitioners ability to perform acupuncture in Alberta, you can look for this permit. If they don't have one, you can report them to the College of Acupuncturists of Alberta, who will investigate whether they should be practicing.
