Resources for this time of homebound distancing and thriving during the COVID outbreak

Here are some useful links for self-care and community care during this time. I will add others. Email me with suggestions of useful things to share.

COVID-19 info and support

• The Centers for Disease Control

• Pawtucket based support and info, from City Counselor, Meghan Kallman

Self-care and community care, in the absence of regular acupuncture

• Do-it-yourself acupressure videos. These are short, wonderful videos created by POCA just for you.

• Do-it-yourself acupressure for nausea and anxiety.

• Do-it-yourself acupressure for calming and to help sleep.

• Ear acupressure, and applying seeds/pressballs

• Simple qi qong exercises for lung health from acupuncturist, Peter Deadman.

• 20 minute morning qi qong routine from Lee Holden

• A tea to break a fever, and more from Manchester Acupuncture Studio

• Do-it-youself “air moxa” technique for strengthening immune and reducing stress

Music and Art and Play for Joy and Melting

• Playing For Change: Beautiful music videos to raise money for music programs around the world

• How I Got Over: ahalia Jackson

• Sanctuary Music TV: Live music series from Troy, NY

• WWOZ: The best radio station in the world. Streaming from New Orleans

Writing and Poetry and Praise and Prayer

“ Prisoners”. Gwendolyn Brooks

“Wilderness”. Carl Sandburg

Brain Pickings: A fantastic daily journal from writer Maria Popova. Try it.

American Academy of Poets

Native American Poetry

Two poems from the founder of the U.S. Dept of Arts and Culture, Adama Horowitz.

"To Our Elders"

When you turn off the news
When you sit for a breath in the sunbeamed chair
What is the stirring in your heart?
The memory that dances across your mind?

We’d love to hear.
We need to hear.

Not answers, nor certitude; not even a sense that all will be well. (We are not well.)
But a story, perhaps, of how time has lived you,
Pulled you into and out of the wilderness
A memory of mystery unfurling,
A tale of mutuality amidst turmoil,
The saying or story that an elder once told you,
And that has tumbled through your being so many times
So as to grow smooth like a riverstone.

This is an invitation to take the riverstones from your pocket and put them on the community altar.

If you’ve never considered yourself an elder, this is the invitation to become one.

Not because we’re expecting perfect words of wisdom,
But because in this unraveling of the world, we are reweaving the village—
And you have a role to play.
Listen in, and know that we’re listening too.
Know that we’re seated in this circle together,
that we need you to stay,
and want to hear what you have to say.

-Zoomed Out" or "What To Do When Everyone You Know, Love, and Dream of a Better World With Is A One-Inch Talking Head In A Pixelated Box"

Praise their presence, grieve their absence.

Grow in your capacity to be touched by other faces, and to not touch your own.

Look someone directly in the eyes (they won’t know) and send them love and a prayer for the wellbeing of everyone they care about.

Try to wrap your mind around how they got here, in front of you.

If that doesn’t spark radical amazement, try to explain how *you* got here, and who “you” is…

Wiggle your toes and watch the freshly budding tree rustle outside your window.

Envision that tree occupying one of the squares on the screen; ask what they would like to contribute to the conversation.

Take your dreams off of mute and drop your spells in the chat box.

Then, dazed by days online, unblock the gridlock with a tech Sabbath—

Recover three dimensions, reach for a fourth.

And remember, we’ll be back at the bonfire before long;

Gather your poetry, prepare your song.

Support Kindred through our pause. Buy a specially priced treatment package now.

We’ve just made it possible for you to buy pre-paid treatment packages online.

As you know, we have shut our doors temporarily in order to join efforts to slow the spread of the Coronavirus. Like many small businesses, especially social businesses like ours where the fees from our services go right back into the clinic operations, closing will take a heavy toll on our financial ability to sustain our mission. In order to guarantee that we can come back strong and keep making regular acupuncture an accessible reality for local individuals and families with working class incomes, we need help from our community of existing patients and from those of you who’ve been considering coming for acupuncture. Specially priced treatment packages are available here. Each one sold will help significantly offest our losses every day of this shut-down. Choose a sliding-scale fee for a 5 pack of treatments where you get a 6th treatment free. Or, purchase a ten pack where you get two treatments free. You can find the link here.

None of us know when business as usual will return. Or, if business as usual will return at all. We do know that community acupuncture is very well suited for these times. It’s cheap. It’s closeby. It emphasizes regulating the basic sytems in our body so that we can get healthy and then stay healthy. Community acupuncture has always been about making this miraculous natural medicine accessible on a large scale to a majority of people. It has always been about transforming healthcare from a profit-driven sytem of high intensity, techno-pharmaceautical intervention to a gentle but powerfully effective web of holistic and preventative care offered locally, and supported and sustained by the members of that community.

We’ll be posting health tips, such as self-administered acupressure, recommended resources about COVID19, links to mutual aid efforts, and info about the ongoing fight for universal healthcare. We can get through this crisis together. And, together we can build more resilient and relevant and effective and democratic sytems of care as we move forward.

Closing for now. Safest option.

We are committed to our mandate to promote the best possible outcome for community health and safety. So, today, in light of the COVID19/Coronavirus epidemic, we are closing the clinic until Friday, March 27th. We are following the best advice from public health professionals and scholars, who all agree, that based on world-wide data, the best thing we can do is to encourage "social distancing" towards "flattening the curve" of transmission of the virus.

Our choice is a hard one, and heartbreaking in some ways. We realize many people in our community rely on us for healthcare, and there is so much we can do with acupuncture to keep people's immune sytem strong and resilient as well as helping with innevitable stress and fatigue. But, acupuncture cannot treat this virus. What we CAN do is to join efforts to slow it's spread. And, that means closing down for at least the next two weeks.

Please stay in touch with us through our website, and/or through our facebook and instagram pages, for updates. We'll post other health tips and info about the pandemic and how it relates to our communities,

We'll also let you know ways to support Kindred and affordable acupuncture during these extraordinary times.

Remember: Check in with loved ones. Remain generous and connected, even if that's by phone or online. Do not engage in xenophobia. Stay informed; avoid unreliable news sources. And support local and national efforts to enact universal health care. If some of us are left behind, we're all at risk.

With love,
Korben and Rachel and Gayle and Lissette and Amy

Working together to stay healthy in ordinary and unusual times

It remains to be true that for the vast majority of you, it still makes sense to come get acupuncture, maybe now as much as ever: but, of course we want to figure out how to be as thoughtful and precautionary as possible. 

As you probably now know, we have coronavirus (COVID-19) patients in our little state; and, of course, Rhode Island is inseperable from the rest of our world. It's not time to panic, but it's a good time to review what we can all do to reduce transmission of this and other diseases. And it's a good reminder of how interconnected we humans are... we can help each other.

STAY HOME IF YOU'RE SICK. First and foremost, please stay home if you're sick (fever, sore throat, coughing and sneezing which is not from allergies). We do not charge a fee for appointments cancelled because of illness. But we do ask that you notify us so that we can open up that appointment slot for someone else. 

WASH HANDS! Be responsible to yourself. Take care of yourself, and take precautions. Washing your hands is the single most important thing you can do to help stem transmission of this and other viruses. Get adequate sleep, eat nourishing foods. But Wash. Your. Hands. 

BE RESPONSIBLE TO OTHERS This includes staying home if you're sick. It includes coughing into your elbow or a tissue. It also includes being self-aware. If you're under the weather, or if you've been around someone who is, consider avoiding places where you might contact vulnerable people (kids, elders, immune-compromised folks), like daycare centers, nursing homes, and hospitals. 

WHAT WE'RE DOING. 

• Our practitioners will wash our hands and arms thoroughly before and after each client.

• We are having every patient wash hands and forearms as soon as they come in to the clinic.

• We are changing the sheets after every patient.

• We can cover your feet for warmth but may stop covering upper body. So, bring a sweater. 

• We're doing extra sanitizing around the clinic.

• We pledge to stay home if we're sick.

• And we're keeping an eye on the RI Department of Health for updates and recommendations.

Check in with loved ones. Remain generous and connected, even if that's by phone or online. Do not engage in xenophobia. Stay informed; avoid unreliable news sources. And support local and national efforts to enact universal health care. If some of us are left behind, we're all at risk.

If you are among the populations at higher risk of succumbing to the COVID 19 virus, you should be very carefully limiting your exposure. Otherwise, and if you can follow some simple quidelines at the clinic, we want to see you for acupuncture. Getting acupuncture is one of the best things you can do to help your immune system function at its best, and also to de-stress. So let's help each other through this unsettling time.

Want unlimited acupuncture for a month? Or two?

“LET’S DO THIS!!!” Winter Special:

one month unlimited acupuncture: sliding scale - 150 - 400

two month unlimited acupuncture: sliding scale - 300 - 800

*recommended - 2-3 tx/wk

*can also be purchased as gift certificate

INTRODUCING......(drumroll please) our new acupunk - RACHEL!

We are pleased to announce that we have a wonderful, new acupuncturist joining Kindred's team. Rachel Martinez will be covering two of Korben’s shifts while he is away between July 19th and July 25th. She will have her own, additional shifts to be announced starting in August, meaning that we”ll be open more hours and hopefully have more available times for your treatments each week. Go to the online scheduler to see when treatments are available and you’ll also be able to see which practitioner is on for that shift.

Rachel Martinez graduated from the New England School of Acupuncture. She is trained in Chinese, Japanese and Orthopedic styles of acupuncture and is also a nationally certified Diplomate in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM).

Before becoming an acupuncturist, Rachel graduated from RISD in 1994 with a Bachelor’s in
Fine Arts Degree in Painting. She later became a leasing agent and property manager, and
oversaw the rebirth of two apartment buildings in Providence.

Rachel is drawn to acupuncture through her Aikido and Zen training. She is a first degree black
belt in Aikido, a traditional Japanese martial art, and has been training for 16 years. Rachel first
experienced the benefits of acupuncture when she received treatments for her aches and pains
she felt from training and later acupuncture kept her healthy during her two pregnancies. She
loves how acupuncture is a holistic system that seeks to balance all aspects of the patient’s health.

Rachel currently lives in Cranston with her husband, two children and pup. We are delighted to welcome her!

Kindred Birthday and Interdependence Day Specials

Exactly two years ago, Kindred opened it’s doors and began providing sliding-scale acupuncture treatments for people in Pawtucket, Providence east side, East Providence, Central Falls, and folks all over RI and southeast Mass. On July 4th, 2017, we had our first Interdependence Day Special and offered free acupuncture to a few dozen people.

This year, we’d like to celebrate our birthday by making it easier for you to bring a loved one, family member, co-worker, friend, or neighbor, and introduce them to community acupuncture. So, between July 1st and July 7th, each time you get a treatment you can bring someone for their first treatment for free.

In addition, from now Through July, when you buy one of our multiple treatment packages, you not only get a free treatment for every five purchased, but you can also bring one guest for their first treatment for free. Buy a five pack and get a sixth treatment free for yourself AND bring a guest for free first treatment during any of your visits. Buy a 10 pack, and the perks are doubled.

Opening party. June 2017

Come during your lunch hour. Come when it’s too hot for the beach. Come when it’s too rainy to play. Come when your summer insomnia hits, or your hay fever, your hives. Come if you injure yourself playing too hard. Come because for most people summer is really not much of any kind of break, and you’re working really hard. Come when you feel disconnected, grief, rage, or confusion. Come to stop smoking or to get help getting off the pain meds. Come to pray. Come to feel good. Come together.

Kindred is hiring for two positions. Part-time acupuncturist to become full-time. And, part-time front desk person/office manager.

Kindred Community Acupuncture is looking for a LICENSED ACUPUNCTURIST who loves working in a collaborative environment, seeing a high volume of patients in a fast paced clinic that is rooted in social justice. This is a great opportunity to work in an established and busy community acupuncture clinic in Rhode Island!

Hiring now for a part-time position. Employee position begins in summer.

To be considered for employment as an acupuncturist at KCA the applicant must:

• Have an active RI acupuncture license..

• Be willing and eager to adopt the style of treatment we utilize at KCA (acupuncture only, distal point treatments required).

• Practice anti-oppression principles and believe in liberation for all people.

• Have done some reading/learning about community acupuncture and understand the basics through POCA membership, attendance at POCAFests, CA 101s, and/or working at other CA clinics.

The ideal applicant:

• Has a passion for community acupuncture, a love of people and a desire to treat large numbers of patients in a dynamic, faced paced environment.

• Is positive, friendly, caring, a clear communicator, dependable and works well independently while being part of a team.

• Able to treat patients quickly and stay focused and calm in a fast-paced environment.

• Is grounded, focused, and confident.

• Loves being very busy and you are stoked to eventually treat 6-8 patients an hour

• Does a superb job reading people and communicating with them in ways that really “speaks to them” and their needs, and facilitates them expressing their own unique goals regarding using acupuncture.

• Is comfortable working with patients speaking Spanish and other non-English languages. (WE STRONGLY PREFER A FLUENT SPANISH SPEAKER)

• Has attention to detail, cleans up, helps out, and is aware of your surroundings

• Has healthy boundaries and knows when to say ‘no’ to difficult patients

• Is comfortable with the LGBTQ community and is body positive

• Is willing, open, and able to learn established clinic systems and treatment styles.

• Has what it takes to be a part of a team:  active listening skills, clearly communicate your needs, you pitch in without having to be asked, you ask questions.

THE CLINIC:

Opened in 2017, 10 recliners, located in bustling and historic mill building at the confluence of Pawtucket and Providence’s east side. We have paid and volunteer front desk coverage. We have a well-loved and beautiful clinic that our patients depend on. We are treating approximately a hundred patients a week. We have relationships with the local healthcare and business communities. We have a very low tolerance for shenanigans, but enthusiastically support diligent work with as many benefits as we can possibly afford.

THE JOB:

Starts with 2-3 shifts per week (must be able to work nights and weekends) with potential for more. Paid training at $15/hour. Hourly rate starts at $20-25/hour DOE. Paid staff meetings. Unlimited acupuncture. Malpractice and DOH fees paid after completed evaluation period. A “boss” (punk owner) that wants to see you succeed and thrive. We work hard here, and with A LOT OF HEART. We provide an opportunity to see many diverse patients while working in a fun and supportive environment. While we value experienced punks, we are happy to train new practitioners. We do not emphasize any specific style or method beyond doing what you think is really awesome acupuncture, but not making a big deal about it. We expect our punks, after training and shadowing, to navigate our online scheduling, online chart noting, and invisible receptionist.

You will be responsible and accountable for:

• Greeting patients and establishing rapport within the first 5 minutes in a kind, welcoming manner

• Diagnosing and devising treatment plans based on a quick review of patient paperwork and short conversations with patients

• Completing 5-8 treatments/hour

• Completing follow up treatments in 10 minutes or less

• Completing new patient/initial treatments in 20 minutes or less

• Remaining aware of community treatment room and its shifting priorities

• Prompt beginning and end of treatments

• Providing patients with a wake up call at their designated time

• Charting patient notes each shift

• Communicating with colleagues as needed

After training and shadowing, we have you needle and we will evaluate your performance to determine if you would be a good fit for CAP. This evaluation is based on many factors such as patient feedback and adequately fulfilling the responsibilities outlined above.

To apply:

If you’re interested, please email Korben Perry a cover letter and current resume to kindredacupuncture@gmail.com

Kindred is now hiring a part-time front desk person for our busy and growing clinic.
We need someone who can connect warmly and quickly with each patient who comes through the door, who can hold good boundaries in terms of our clinic systems and what is expected/required from patients. You need to be detail oriented and proficient at basic computer and record keeping skills. There is an opportunity for additional hours if you have skills and interest in marketing/social media/outreach.
As providers of affordable and effective and natural health care, we want to keep figuring out ways to make our clinic a comfortable and accessible healing-home for more and more people from more and more of the communities who call this part of Rhode Island and southeast Massachusetts home. An awareness of what goes into creating welcome and holding space for a diverse population of patients is important. Do you speak or are you willing to learn Spanish? 
We are serious about how this way of providing healthcare and running a business fits into caring for the planet and eliminating oppression based on class, language, race, physical ability, mental health status, sexual orientation, age, etc. And we are serious about Kindred being a self-supporting fountain of resource for ourselves. Provide reliably effectively and be provided for.
We are not serious about many things and really like to have fun and to emphasize a warm connection with our patients and surrounding community. Our clinic systems, rooted in the crowd-sourced best practices of all POCA clinics, also allow for these kinds of connections.
Your pay is negotiable and will be based somewhat on experience. There will initially be at least two shifts available,possibly including a weekend day, and an evening.
Send inquiries to kindredacupuncture@gmail.com or call us. We look forward to talking to you.

The People's Organization of Community Acupuncture.. . . And you!

Kindred is a member of The People’s Organization of Community Acupuncture. We’d like you to be a member too. So, we’re offering unlimited ten dollar treatments through May when you sign up and become a POCA member. Here’s what it would mean for you and what it would mean for community acupuncture. And, here’s a link to sign up and learn more. Or we can help you at the clinic, of course.

Benefits Include

• · Free treatment on your birthday

• · 3 free treatments cards to share with others, good at POCA clinics worldwide

• · Waived new patient fees at POCA clinics worldwide

• · Opportunities to volunteer, vote and discuss all things community acupuncture

• · Monthly e-newsletter Sticking Together

Your Membership Supports

• · Micro-loans to open and support more clinics like ours

• · Affordable acupuncture school and continuing education

• · Work on legislative change to encourage and support

• community acupuncture

• · A working model for sustainable, ethical, affordable community healthcare practice

The mission of the People’s Organization of Community Acupuncture (POCA) is to work cooperatively to increase accessibility to and availability of affordable group acupuncture treatments. 

Black Panthers: Healthcare, acupuncture and community self-reliance.

Here’s a very short documentary about the Black Panthers and their efforts to construct real systems of care under extreme economic and social oppression. Their revolutionary healthcare initiative included providing acupuncture into the first widespread use in the U.S. outside more insular east Asian communities.

Guns, berets and leather jackets are what many folks typically associate with the Black Panther Party. But the Black Panthers were instrumental in bringing healthcare to neglected communities.