Year of the Dragon

Root & Branch Residency Program 2024-2025

 

Part of Root & Branch’s core mission is to serve the Chinese medicine community and to work hard to help improve all of our abilities to be the best practitioners we can be. To that end, Root & Branch has created a clinical residency program for recent graduates of Chinese medicine to help them transition from the life a student to the life of a private practitioner.

The program’s primary focus is on helping residents get established as independent practitioners with direct instruction on building the business side of your practice as well as learning advanced clinical techniques for conditions you will see in private practice. This includes everything from picking a business entity and filing with the state and the IRS to the graphic design of the logo for your company to learning new herbal strategies for treating allergies or anxiety, and everything in between. Additionally, residents will work with experienced clinicians in the clinic, observing and assisting where appropriate and discussing the treatments and case management for real patients.

Our goal is to provide a good foundation for new practitioners and teach the skills essential to running a good and successful practice.

The ‘24-’25 Root & Branch Residency Cohort will be limited to two (2) participants.

This program is a good match for recent grads who:

  1. Are available Friday mornings (9am-11am) for residency classes

  2. Intend to take their board exams in the fall of 2024 with a target license date of January or February 2025

  3. Intend to take the NCCAOM Herbal Board Exam

  4. Have a strong interest in using herbs with most or all of their patients

  5. Are self starters with a can-do, DIY energy

  6. Are going to be living in the greater Portland area at least through the end of the residency program

  7. Have an interest in exploring other types of needling and diagnostic methods beyond the standard TCM methods taught in CM programs

Program Description

Duration: approximately 18 months
Starting after Autumn Equinox Year of the Dragon (2024) and finishing after the first Moon of Spring Year of the Horse (2026)

 

Timeline for Application

Applications Open May 6th 2024

Applications Close DEADLINE EXTENSION to June 26th

Interviews for prospective residents end of June and beginning July 2024

Decisions announced July 9th 2024

Program Begins September 27th 2024

Program Benefits:

  1. Business or clinical classes every week that teach through the Small Business Essential Curriculum and Advanced Clinical Skills Curriculum (see below)

  2. Weekly observation of senior practitioners until you are licensed

    • Potential to work directly with patients under a provisional license from the OMB

  3. Business cards and promotional materials for building your brand

  4. Insurance Credentialing with major Portland Area plans, once you are licensed ($500 value)

  5. Participation in the clinic’s EHR, once licensed ($50 monthly value)

  6. Once licensed, ability to see patients in the Root & Branch clinic for the duration of your residency

Key Highlights:

  1. Your patients are yours to take with you at end of the residency

  2. Learn key aspects of setting up and operating your own clinic, including pharmacy management and standard operating procedure (SOP) creation

  3. Build your brand and your style within the protection of an established clinic

  4. Learn advanced clinical skills from experienced clinicians through classroom and clinical instruction

Your Costs:

  1. For the duration of the residency, five (5) hours of work per week in the pharmacy. Additional hours worked are paid at $20 per hour.

  2. After licensure, when seeing patients in the clinic, earnings will be split with Root & Branch:

    • 60/40 split of all revenues (60% to you, 40% to us)

Your Minimum Time Obligations:

  1. One observation shift per week (4 hours)

  2. 1-2 Pharmacy shifts per week (first 5 hours per week are volunteer)

  3. One class per week on Fridays (2 hours)

Example of a Common Resident Schedule at Root & Branch:

Monday: Nothing
Tuesday: Observation (9am - 1pm), Lunch (1pm-2pm), Pharmacy Shift (2pm-4:30pm)
Wednesday: Pharmacy Shift (9am-1pm)
Thursday: Nothing
Friday: Residency Class (9am-11am)

Business Curriculum

Clinical Curriculum

  1. Small Business Essentials

    • Different Business Entity Types and Choosing the Right One (Lewis and Clark Small Business Legal Center)

    • Articles of Organization (Incorporation) and Operating Agreements (exit clause)

    • Administrative Requirements – Annual Meetings, Minutes, etc… (creating a paper trail)

    • Banking set-up

      • Credit cards and other financial tools for building your business

    • Accounting Basics and Taxes

      • Using Quickbooks

      • Understanding cash flow, income statements, credit, and budgeting

    • Using Experts

      • Lawyers, accountants, business professionals

    • Leases, buildouts, and permit requirements

    • Business plan creation

  2. Practice Building

    • Picking a location

    • Marketing Opportunities

      • In-person: Farmer’s markets, table-sits, street fairs, business networking groups, chamber of commerce

      • Indirect marketing: Flyer campaign, direct mailing, neighborhood canvassing

      • Digital: Website creation, SEO, blogging, social media

    • Insurance Credentialing

    • Graphic Design and Branding

      • Software and tools to do the work yourself

    • Customer service strategies and hiccups

  3. Clinical Operations

    • Pricing Structures and Incentive Programs

      • Consider your audience and location

    • Treatment planning and building a consistent patient flow

    • Insurance Billing and Tracking

      • Guide to verifying patient benefits

      • Spread sheets of fee schedules, billing techniques, and appropriate codes

    • Ordering, inventory management, pars sheets, and SOPs

  1. Advanced Herbal Diagnostics

    • Jing Fang assessment methods

    • Understanding and utilizing 6 conformations and 5 phases

    • Palpation techniques for diagnosis

  2. Advanced Acupuncture Diagnostics and Techniques

    • Body area palpation and point selection

    • Japanese needling methods

    • Moxa for various conditions

    • Bleeding and bleed cupping

  3. Treating common conditions successfully with herbs and acupuncture

    • Cold and Flu

    • Depression and Anxiety

    • Allergies

    • Sleep and Energy

    • Digestion

Meet Our ‘22-’23 Residents

 

Lauren Morse of Mosaic Wellness

 

Caitlynn Bohman of Dancing Aspen Healing Arts

 

“Being a resident was pivotal in developing branding for my business. It was also invaluable to have help navigating the insurance credentialing process. Travis K. and Travis C. have been so open in sharing their own success and hurdles in growing Root & Branch. I have sincerely felt their investment in my development as a business owner and practitioner, and I know this will continue beyond the length of my residency.”

— Lauren Morse, DACM, DiplOM, LAc

“This opportunity helped to streamline the entire process of starting my business, including getting credentialed with insurance companies and marketing myself. Prior to this, I had no clue how to run a business. However, since being in this program, I feel leagues more confident in my abilities and knowledge — and I have mentors in my corner who I can reach out to when I’m feeling lost.”

— Caitlynn Bohman, DACM, DiplOM, LAc

 

FAQ

  • Short answer: no, not without a medical license. You can remove needles, apply moxa, do body work, or otherwise assist a practitioner, but you cannot needle on your own.

    But, there is an opportunity to secure a provisional license from the OMB for 6 months while you take your board exams that would allow you to treat patients under supervision, similar to your work as an intern. We can help you navigate the process but ultimately, securing the provisional license will depend on your ability to meet the requirements of application.

  • Yes! Participation in our residency is paid for with your 5 hours of work in our pharmacy but any additional hours you work are paid at $20. Most of our residents work 10-20 hours per week in total in our pharmacy.

  • Of course! We know that the time after graduation has a particular set of challenges and making ends meet is an important one.

    Every week in the first 5 months of your residency, you will have one observation shift, one pharmacy shift, and one class, a total of about 12 hours per week, usually just on 2 days. All the rest of your time is yours to use as you please!

  • We are open Monday to Friday 9am to 4pm so we work two shifts per day: 9am - 1pm and 1pm - 4:30/5pm.

    Your observation shift will be a morning or an afternoon shift, your pharmacy shift(s) also a morning or an afternoon, and your classes will be Friday mornings from 9am-11am.

  • Pharmacy assistants primarily fill formulas from our online system but they also serve as a kind of front desk staff: interacting with patients, taking payments, scheduling, and answering questions.