AIMC has an awesome class on pharmacognosy!
AIMC has an awesome class on pharmacognosy!
Published on July 15th, 2010 @ 04:52:36 pm , using 331 words, 920 views
By Eric Brand
This weekend I'll be teaching at AIMC in Berkeley. When I first saw the syllabus I was completely blown away by the content of the class. Obviously I love the subject matter, but beyond that I am truly impressed that AIMC offers a class like this. This class would have been my dream class as a student, and I'm honored that I have the chance to teach it this semester.
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Safe compounding practices and attention to issues of herbal quality control are essential for modern practitioners. In the past, few practitioners had the opportunity to study issues of herbal pharmacy in depth, and few resources exist for learning about things like herbal identification and pao zhi. Having such a class integrated into the curriculum shows that AIMC is deeply dedicated to advancing the profession. Not only are they are staying abreast of key issues in the field, they are taking action and responding in a way that demonstrates true leadership. It warms my heart to see that more and more schools are starting to integrate this type of material.
Check out the basic syllabus below:
1. Define pharmacognosy
2. Discuss the sourcing and supply chain of herbs from China to the West.
3. Show understanding of the issue of correct and incorrect species in current herb trade. This includes the recognizing some commonly incorrectly identified herbs and the reasons for the confusion.
4. Display and understanding of the complex history of Chinese herb property assignment including an understanding of the evolution of a given herb’s uses and property assignment.
5. Gain an appreciation for the full range of processing and preparation of Chinese herbs including Water, Fire, Water and Fire, Solid adjuvant and Liquid adjuvant treatment.
6. Understand safety guidelines for storing and prescribing bulk herbs.
7. Display understanding of production and use of various methods of herb preparations such as concentrated granules, pills etc.
8. Conduct research on the issue of herb-drug interactions.
I wish I had this class when I was a student!
Permalink6 comments
Eric, was this seminar recorded? Would the contents be available through AMIC? As a pharmacist practicing Chinese medicine the information at this seminar really peaks my interest. thx jim 
Shoot. Wish I knew about this ahead of time. Maybe it was for AIMC students only though. Or was it a seminar? 
Hi Jim and Derek,Unfortunately, the AIMC class wasn't recorded (it was a standard curriculum class, not a seminar). The class was great and the content was really fun to teach. We've talked about turning similar material into a Blue Poppy distance learning seminar and I will probably teach on this topic in the Bay Area again. I think Five Branches may host a lecture on this material and hopefully I'll have the chance to do it at AIMC in future semesters.
Eric
Please do one for Blue Poppy. I have been interested in this for some time- wrote most of the Pharmacognosy article for Wikipedia. 
Add my name to the list as very interested in future iterations of this class, looks great! 
Aloha Eric, I am teaching pharmacognosy (for the first time) at the Traditional Chinese Medicine College of Hawaii next term. Any suggestions on source material pertaining to Chinese medicinal pharmocognosy (books, articles, websites, etc.) for this class would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance, Noah 
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