Traditional Chinese Medicine 中国传统医学

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)（中国传统医学，zhōngguó chuántǒng yīxué）is a complete medical system that has been used to diagnose, treat, and prevent illnesses for more than 2,000 years. Historically, it has played an important role in the prevention and treatment of diseases in China. TCM says processes of the human body are interrelated and constantly interact with the environment. Therefore the theory looks for the signs of disharmony in the external and internal environment of a person in order to understand, treat and prevent illness and disease.

Recently there have been many examples of the integration of Chinese Medicine into the western medical establishment. The United Kingdom became the first western nation to include coverage for Chinese medical treatment in its National Health Service. Most major US hospitals now employ Chinese Medicine practitioners（中医师， zhōngyīshī）. In Canada, British Columbia became the first province to recognise the Chinese Medicine practitioners as health professionals, which gives them the same status as western medical doctors. A reformed BC provincial health care plan to cover Chinese Medicine is also on the drawing board. Similar initiatives have also been taken in ontario and Quebec.

From its ancient roots, modern Chinese Medicine has developed into several inseparable facets, which include acupuncture（针灸，zhēnjiǔ）, herbal medicine（中药，zhōngyào）, Tuina（推拿，Tuīná）, dietary regulation（食疗，shíliáo）, and therapeutic exercise（治疗，zhì liáo）, such as Qigong（气功，Qìgōng）and Tai Chi（太极，Tàijí）. At Clinique SinoCare, we mainly use acupuncture, herbal medicine and Tuina to provide effective treatments for a wide range of health problems.

Difference of Chinese and Western Diagnostic Method Traditional Chinese medicine is considered to require considerable diagnostic skill. This often depends on the ability to observe what are described as subtle differences without hurting the patient. This may be contrasted with a straightforward laboratory test which indicates an unambiguous cause. A training period of years or decades is said to be necessary for TCM practitioners to understand the full complexity of symptoms and dynamic balances. However nowadays, modern practitioners in China often use a traditional system in combination with Western methods.

Diagnostic & treatment principle Traditional Chinese Medicine regards the human body as an organic whole. The practitioner observes all symptoms, including lifestyle, diet, working environment, emotional conditions and physical constitution when seeking for the fundamental causes of disequilibrium. Chinese Medicine treats health problems by working with the resources of the body itself. It uses acupuncture, Tuina and herbal medicine, to re-establish the equilibrium of the systemic functions and to achieve a healthy state, most of the time without any side effects.

The diagnosis is the most difficult and also the most critical part of the treatment process. Often the same symptoms in individuals can be a manifestation of different causes and therefore be treated differently. Different symptoms can also be the manifestation of a similar cause and therefore would be treated similarly. In addition, an individual’s physique and organ conditions are also major factors that should be taken into consideration in the diagnosis, so two patients with identical symptoms and causes may also be treated differently.