Pediatric Acupuncture at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital

In this interview, AIMC graduate Ra shares her experience using the wisdom of Chinese Medicine, what she calls “Acu-therapy,” at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital.

Ra’s day-to-day in the hospital keeps her on her toes as she offers pain relief and palliative care to a wide range of pediatric patients from neonates to young adults. In addition to her usual work in the hospital, they discuss her experience as a clinician doing Telemedicine during Covid 19 & returning to work with the hospital’s new protective protocols. Ra’s expertise working in an integrative setting and blending the wisdom of Western and Eastern medical knowledge are on full display in this fun interview.

About Dr. Ra, DACM, LAc.

Robyn “Ra” Adcock is a California licensed acupuncturist, graduate of the Master of Science in Oriental Medicine program at AIMC Berkeley, & former AIMC Master’s Program Director. Ra also serves as the Executive Director for the California State Oriental Medical Association (CSOMA) and has served as the California representative to the American Society of Acupuncturists (ASA). Ra enjoys teaching qigong classes at UCSF, at major medical conferences, and in weekly classes in the East Bay and loves seeing pediatric and adult patients in her private clinical practice in Berkeley, CA.

Ra practices at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital where she serves on the progressive Integrative Pediatric and Palliative Care Team (IP3) and also participates in clinical research in the pediatric oncology department. Currently, she is the lead clinician for a 3-year, $3 million dollar PCORI study that will access the efficacy of acupressure to relieve the most common symptoms associated with cancer treatment. It is the largest TCM pediatric oncology study ever conducted.

Sowa Wellness

Ra is interviewed by Sowa Wellness’s founding Vice Director Adam Okerblom. He practices and teaches traditional Eastern Medicine in the San Francisco Bay Area. Adam received his graduate degree in Traditional Tibetan Medicine studies at the Shang Shung Institute School of Tibetan Medicine. In addition to running Sowa Wellness and Wellness On the Spot LLC, he practices Acupuncture, Chinese Medicine and Tibetan Medicine at East West Integrative Medicine Clinic in San Francisco.