Acupuncture treatment may help patients with chronic pain in their pain management.
The acupuncture service at Sengkang General Hospital (SKH) offers complimentary acupuncture treatment (both inpatient and outpatient) for pain management from any discipline within the hospital as well as from any other medical institutions, such as polyclinics, general practitioners and private specialists.
Our physicians are trained in acupuncture and are MOH-registered Traditional Chinese Medicine acupuncturists.
Acupuncture treatment is a drug-free treatment, which may ease pain or improve symptoms of a patient's condition and can reduce their reliance on medication. The acupuncture service aims to provide complementary therapy to the conventional medical treatment that patients are currently receiving from their primary physicians.
The acupuncture service offered at SKH provides treatment for mainly chronic pain patients when conventional treatment is either contraindicated and/or may cause undesirable side effects or is not able to provide desired pain relief. The common conditions that patients are treated for include back, neck, shoulder, facial and muscular pain, headache, arthritis, pelvic pain, nerve pain and post-surgical pain. The list of conditions treated with acupuncture is not exhaustive, and acupuncture treatment for specific medical conditions is not evidence-based; more research would be required for using acupuncture for some of these medical conditions. Not all conditions can be treated using acupuncture.
Policies and Procedures for Acupuncture Treatment
Patients who are referred from general practitioners or polyclinics will be first reviewed by a practising medical practitioner who is a registered acupuncturist. An acupuncturist will then assess the person’s medical condition and suitability for acupuncture therapy. The physician will perform a comprehensive assessment and review of the patient before prescribing treatment accordingly.
Ensuring Patient Safety During Acupuncture Treatment
After establishing and discussing the treatment plan for the patient and ensuring no contraindications are present at each session, the acupuncturist will provide the treatment in the treatment rooms. Acupuncture treatments include needling, heat and electro-acupuncture. The patient will be monitored and cared for by clinical assistants/acupuncturists throughout the procedure.
Acupuncturists maintain stringent sterilisation procedures and aseptic techniques, such as the use of sterile disposable acupuncture needles, thus ensuring that there is no transmission of communicable diseases between patients.
Precautions and Contraindications
Each patient is different and results may vary. There is a tremendous difference in response to acupuncture treatment. Some may notice an immediate improvement and others only feel a change a day or two after treatment. Meanwhile, there are also those who may have delayed improvement several days after treatment and even some patients who do not benefit from acupuncture treatment at all.
You may be at risk of complications if you have various existing medical conditions such as active bleeding disorders, electrical implants or are pregnant. Further discussion should be carried out with the medical doctor at the first consultation. Contraindications would include pregnancy and any other unstable medical condition.
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