The Cedar City Community Acupuncture clinic offers acupuncture on an sliding scale.
The sliding scale is used to accommodate for the differing financial circumstances and abilities to pay for health care, according to the Cedar City Community acupuncture Web site. A sliding scale is a range of payment options which allows patients adjust what they pay according to their income.
“The reason it’s used is to make it affordable, so people can come in regularly enough to get well,” said Carol Levesque, clinic practitioner. “Traditionally it’s $75 as an average cost for a treatment, and a lot of people can’t even afford one treatment.”
Documentation of income for the sliding scale is not required at the clinic and rates range from $15 to $40 per treatment. There is a one-time $10.00 fee with the first appointment.
Payments are due at the time of the treatment.
Different from traditional acupuncture clinics in the United States, the Cedar City Clinic treats multiple patients at a time. Community acupuncturists treat multiple patients in the same room. The group setting creates a collective energy which strengthens each individual treatment Levesque said.
There are more than 150 community acupuncturist clinics in the USA, Levesque said.
“They are all set up so people of all types of income can come in and get treated,” Levesque said.
In China, where acupuncture originates, acupuncture is done in a community setting, she said.
“The benefits are that people actually heal quicker,” Levesque said. “Patients can see what is happening with other patients and there’s a sense of comfort that comes with that.”
Levesque said there is a private room open for acupuncture treatments that require clothes to be removed, such as the lower back treatment.
Furthermore, the group setting allows for multiple patients per hour which, in turn, allows for lower prices.
Levesque said she sees an average of 20 students per month.
Levesque earned her Master’s of Science in Biomedical Clinical Sciences from Southwest Acupuncture College located in Boulder, Colo.
She has also studied traditional Chinese medicine at Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine in Harbin, China.
Levesque is also nationally certified in therapeutic massage and bodywork, graduating from Sensory Development Institute at the Green Valley Spa in St. George.
She has a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Community Services & Sociology from Saint Martin’s University located in Lacey, Wash.
According to acupuncture.com, the ancient Chinese believed there is a universal life energy called Chi or Qi present in every living creature. This energy is said to circulate throughout the body along specific pathways that are called meridians.
As long as this energy flows freely throughout the meridians, health is maintained, but once the flow of energy is blocked, the system is disrupted and pain and illness occur.
Acupuncture restores normal functions by stimulating certain points on the meridians in order to free up the Chi energy.
Acupuncture has been used for the treatment of back pain, headache, migraines, and sports injuries. It is also used in treating anxiety and insomnia.
“It’s really rewarding to hear stories from the people I’ve treated,” Levesque said.
Acupuncture needles are very thin and are not painful like hypodermic needles. There may be a sensation of warmth or heaviness at the insertion point but most patients find that there is no discomfort.
“I hate needles,” said Skylar Byrd, a junior studio artist from West Valley. “So I’d never get acupuncture, even knowing all the benefits.”
Alexa Smith, a freshman human nutrition major from Richmond, Va., said she didn’t know much about acupuncture.
“I know that they stick needles in you,” Smith said. “But I didn’t know that there were so many benefits to the treatment.”
Smith said it was something she’d definitely try to see what it’s like.
Levesque said this was common among students at SUU.
“Acupuncture is a new thing to the area and not many people fully understand it,” Levesque said. “But word is slowly spreading people are learning the benefits.”
Treatments can last anywhere from half an hour to two hours; the average is about an hour.
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