Occupation Summary

Acupuncturists

O*NET 29-1291.00

Description:

Diagnose, treat, and prevent disorders by stimulating specific acupuncture points within the body using acupuncture needles. May also use cups, nutritional supplements, therapeutic massage, acupressure, and other alternative health therapies.

Annual Wages:
$75,480.00
Employment Rate:
Employment is expected to increase by 16.43%.
Education Level:
Master's Degree. According to O*Net, the majority of people employed in this occupation have this level of education.
Endorsement:
Public Service, Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM)

  1. Formulate herbal preparations to treat conditions considering herbal properties, such as taste, toxicity, effects of preparation, contraindications, and incompatibilities.
  2. Maintain and follow standard quality, safety, environmental, and infection control policies and procedures.
  3. Maintain detailed and complete records of health care plans and prognoses.
  4. Dispense herbal formulas and inform patients of dosages and frequencies, treatment duration, possible side effects, and drug interactions.
  5. Consider Western medical procedures in health assessment, health care team communication, and care referrals.
  6. Adhere to local, state, and federal laws, regulations, and statutes.
  7. Treat patients using tools, such as needles, cups, ear balls, seeds, pellets, or nutritional supplements.
  8. Educate patients on topics, such as meditation, ergonomics, stretching, exercise, nutrition, the healing process, breathing, or relaxation techniques.
  9. Evaluate treatment outcomes and recommend new or altered treatments as necessary to further promote, restore, or maintain health.
  10. Assess patients' general physical appearance to make diagnoses.
  11. Collect medical histories and general health and lifestyle information from patients.
  12. Apply moxibustion directly or indirectly to patients using Chinese, non-scarring, stick, or pole moxa.
  13. Apply heat or cold therapy to patients using materials, such as heat pads, hydrocollator packs, warm compresses, cold compresses, heat lamps, or vapor coolants.
  14. Analyze physical findings and medical histories to make diagnoses according to Oriental medicine traditions.
  15. Develop individual treatment plans and strategies.
  16. Treat medical conditions, using techniques such as acupressure, shiatsu, or tuina.
  17. Insert needles to provide acupuncture treatment.
  18. Identify correct anatomical and proportional point locations based on patients' anatomy and positions, contraindications, and precautions related to treatments, such as intradermal needles, moxibustion, electricity, guasha, or bleeding.

Watch a video about Acupuncturists

Career videos are provided by: CareerOneStop.org


National Industry Employment Patterns


Industry % of Acupuncturists employed Annual Growth Rate
Offices of other health practitioners 23.2 1.08


Labor Market Information


2023 Statewide average hourly wage $36.29
2023 National average hourly wage $40.51
2022 National employment 26,600
2022 Texas employment 2,112
Texas projected employment by 2032 2,459
Texas projected annual employment and Turnover openings through 2032 173




TEXAS COUNTY MAP BY WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AREA
* Due to confidentiality rules, not all regions may have the data displayed. The sum of all the regions may not be equal to the state total.


Top 10 Relevant Knowledge Areas Relevant Importance Levels
Medicine and Dentistry
Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
91.80%
Customer and Personal Service
Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
83.00%
Therapy and Counseling
Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
81.40%
Psychology
Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
78.00%
Sales and Marketing
Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
72.80%
Education and Training
Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
72.20%
English Language
Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
72.00%
Administration and Management
Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
64.20%
Biology
Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
59.20%
Administrative
Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
57.00%


Top 10 Relevant Skill Areas Relevant Importance Levels
Active Listening
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
77.60%
Critical Thinking
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
75.00%
Social Perceptiveness
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
75.00%
Service Orientation
Actively looking for ways to help people.
72.40%
Speaking
Talking to others to convey information effectively.
70.00%
Judgment and Decision Making
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
70.00%
Reading Comprehension
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
67.60%
Monitoring
Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
65.00%
Active Learning
Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
62.40%
Writing
Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
62.40%


Top 10 Relevant Abilities Relevant Importance Levels
Problem Sensitivity
The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
77.60%
Deductive Reasoning
The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
77.60%
Oral Expression
The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
77.60%
Oral Comprehension
The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
77.60%
Inductive Reasoning
The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
75.00%
Near Vision
The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
75.00%
Written Comprehension
The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
72.40%
Arm-Hand Steadiness
The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
65.00%
Finger Dexterity
The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
65.00%
Speech Clarity
The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
65.00%


  • Assisting and Caring for Others
    -- Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
  • Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
    -- Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
  • Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
    -- Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
  • Documenting/Recording Information
    -- Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
  • Making Decisions and Solving Problems
    -- Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Other Activities


  • Achievement
    - Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
  • Relationships
    - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.


Tools

Acupuncture magnet pellets or seeds: Therapeutic acupuncture magnets;

Acupuncture needles: Ear tacks;

Balance beams or boards or bolsters or rockers for rehabilitation or therapy: Positioning bolsters;

Commercial use food grinders: Herb grinders;

Electric vibrators for rehabilitation or therapy: Ultrasound massagers; Vibration massagers;

Electronic blood pressure units: Blood pressure monitors;

Endoscopic hemostatic balloons or needles or tubes or accessories: Hemostat clamps;

Foot care products: Foot rollers;

Handheld thermometer: Handheld digital thermometers;

Hypodermic needle: Press needles; Seven-star needles; Intradermal acupuncture needles; Filiform acupuncture needles; Ear needles;

Ion analyzers: Air ion testers;

Ion exchange apparatus: Ionizers;

Lancets: Lancet needles; Three-edged bloodletting needles;

Lasers: Crystal probes; Laser pens;

Mats or platforms for rehabilitation or therapy: Massage chairs; Massage tables;

Medical acoustic stethoscopes: Dual head stethoscopes;

Medical diagnostic pinwheels: Wartenberg pinwheels;

Medical heat lamps: Infrared heat lamps; Digital heat lamps; Portable heat lamps; Mineral wave lamps;

Medical hydrocollators: Hydrocollator units;

Medical tuning forks: Acutonics tuning forks;

Mercury blood pressure units: Adenoid sphygmomanometers;

Needle guides: Acupuncture needle guide tubes; Needle inserters; Needle plungers;

Needle or blade or sharps disposal containers or carts: Biohazard containers;

Neurological diagnostic sets: Acupuncture ear probes;

Neuromuscular stimulators or kits: Microcurrent systems; Pen probes; Pulsed magnetic field generators; Digital electronic acupunctoscopes; Four sensor probes; Electroacupuncture stimulation units; Electronic muscle stimulators;

Ophthalmoscopes or otoscopes or scope sets: Otoscopes;

Reflex hammers or mallets: Buck neurological hammers; Babinski hammers; Taylor-type percussion hammers;

Steam autoclaves or sterilizers: Autoclave sterilizers;

Surgical clamps or clips or forceps: Splinter forceps; Lockable forceps; Dressing forceps; Angle tip forceps; Adson forceps;

Surgical scissors: Bandage scissors; Operating scissors; Scissor pincettes;

Therapeutic balls: Rolling drums; Manaka hammers; Gua sha tools;

Therapeutic heating or cooling pads or compresses or packs: Moxa extinguishers; Moxa spoons; Magnetic cupping sets; Plastic cupping sets; Therapeutic cooling packs; Therapeutic heating packs; Glass cupping sets;

Therapeutic heating or cooling units or systems: Moxa boxes; Moxa burners; Moxa burning bowls; Moxa cans; Tiger warmers;

Tongue depressors or blades or sticks: Tongue depressors;

Transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation units: Trancutaneous electrical nerve stimulation TENS units;

Tweezers: Tack tweezers; Wide grip tweezers;

Vacuum pumps: Ion pumps;

Wrist exercisers for rehabilitation or therapy: Hand exercise balls; Hand rollers; Magnetic finger rings;


Technology

Electronic mail software: Microsoft Outlook;

Medical software: AcuPartner Professional; Electronic health record EHR software; Miridia Technology AcuGraph; Qchart; Qpalm Acupuncture; QPuncture II; Trigram Software AcuBase Pro;

Office suite software: Microsoft Office software;

Operating system software: Microsoft Windows;

Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel;

Word processing software: Microsoft Word; Word processing software;


Related O*NET occupational titles for Acupuncturists include:
  • 29-1229.01 Allergists and Immunologists
  • 29-1212.00 Cardiologists
  • 29-1011.00 Chiropractors
  • 29-1214.00 Emergency Medicine Physicians
  • 29-1215.00 Family Medicine Physicians
  • 29-1216.00 General Internal Medicine Physicians
  • 31-9011.00 Massage Therapists
  • 29-1299.01 Naturopathic Physicians
  • 29-1171.00 Nurse Practitioners
  • 29-1229.04 Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physicians


No sources of additional information found.

Contact Texas Workforce Commission
Labor Market and Career Information  |  101 E. 15th Street, Annex Room 0252  |  Austin, Texas 78778
Official Website  |  1-800-822-PLAN (7526)  |  512.936.3200

** The information in this report may be derived from many sources like O*NET, BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics), OOH (Occupational Outlook Handbook), and Career One Stop.