Joe C. Chang, MAOM, Dipl OM, LAc.



Joe has worked at 2 integrative PTSD programs for the military as an acupuncturist. Additionally, he has worked as a volunteer acupuncturist with the Austin Veterans and Family Advocacy Council in their Veterans Team Recovery Integrated Immersion Program. He has published peer-reviewed articles for Occupational Therapy International and Medical Acupuncture. He is currently a member of the Military Acupuncture Society for Military Physicians. He has been an invited speaker at Boston Medical Center, the Washington State Veterans Affairs Department, and the Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital. He is the coauthor of The Treatment of PTSD with Chinese MedicineundefinedAn Integrative Approach.

Articles by Joe Chang:
Acupuncture for the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Review of Evidence-Based Research

Weighing the Costs - Integrative PTSD Programs for Veterans


Kelly Frith, LAc, Dipl Ac (NCCAOM)



MSOM, Hawaii College of Oriental Medicine, 2005.

Undergraduate education at The Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA with an emphasis on Herbal Medicine.

She currently maintains a private practice in Waimea combining herbal medicine and Japanese Acupuncture. Ms. Frith teaches our Herbal Dispensary course and is a teaching assistant for other herbal classes.


Gwen Fujioka, Tai Chi & Qi Gong Teacher



Certified Tai Chi, Qi Gong, Meditation and Stress Management instructor since 1998, initially studying under Master Tom Grunden from 1993.

Sifu Gwen also trained in the Choy Lee Fut system, under Grand Master Chan Yong Fa, Sifu John Saw and Sifu Seng Jeorng Au (Au's Shaolin Arts Society) in China and Hawaii in Shaolin Lohan Chi Kung, as well as The Chan Family Tai Chi form; with Master Chen Hui-Xian to teach their Turtle Longevity Qi Gong forms, and in Germany with Master Li Cheng Ji in Tai Chi, Tai Chi Sword and Tai Chi Stick.

Sifu Gwen teaches Qigong courses and has been teaching at HICOM since 2001


Jacqueline Hahn, ND



National College of Naturopathic Medicine, Portland, OR, 1994. Certified Obstetrical Specialist (American College of Naturopathic Obstetricians), 1996. B.S. (Microbiology & Public Health), Washington State University, 1984.

Licensed Massage Therapist. Licensed Animal Health Technologist. Licensed Medical Laboratory Technologist. HIV/AIDS Prevention Program Coordinator, U. S. Center for Disease Control, Northern Mariana Islands District, 1996-1998.

Adjunct Faculty, Northern Marianas College, 1996-1998.

Founder and physician at Hilo Naturopathic and Acupuncture Clinic, 1998-present. Jacqui has been teaching at HICOM since 2003.


Harry Uhane Jim, Kahuna



Harry Uhane Jim is one of the last Kahuna of Lomilomi, Keeper of the Deep Mysteries of authentic Hawaiian esoterica. He shares the secrets of this ancient oral tradition with readers for the first time in Wise Secrets of Aloha. Recognizing that the world is in great peril, Kahuna Harry was blessed by the Halau Guardians who instructed him to share the true teachings and tools of Lomilomi for the practice of physical, emotional, and spiritual healing.

He writes: "Now is the time to share aloha with humanity. `Aloha' means the Breath of God is in our Presence. It is time to reveal the profound Lomilomi secrets of the kahunas for personal and planetary peace." Wise Secrets of Aloha is as simple as it is profound, as contemporary as it is ancient. It is true to Hawaiian esoteric teachings and available to all who bring the right attitude. Aloha calls. Listen in the the splash of waves, in the breeze-- the air is filled with aloha. All the abundance, joy, and freedom from old wounds readers have ever yearned for can be found by adopting the aloha spirit.


book:  "Wise Secrets of Aloha"





Chieko J. Maekawa, PhD, DAc, LAc, Dipl Ac



Dr. Maekawa trained at New England Acupuncture School, 1982, and graduated with honors from the Waseda Medical Arts College, Tokyo, 1985.

NCCA Dipl. Ac. 1986. Ph.D., University of Health Science, Honolulu, 1991; D.Ac., University of Health Science, 2000.

Executive Director, Seitai Shinpo Foundation, 1983-97.

Vice-President (1985-92) and President (1992-present), Big Island Acupuncture Association. Board of Directors (Education Chair), Hawaii Acupuncture Association, 1993-present. Founder, Traditional Japanese Acupuncture Foundation, 1997-present.

Dr. Maekawa has her acupuncture clinic in Kona, Hawaii. Dr. Maekawa has taught the series of electives on Japanese acupuncture at HICOM since 2002.


David Bruce Leonard, LAc, - DEAN

Graduated from Five Branches Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine college. Practitioner and teacher of all five branches of traditional Chinese medicine: Acupuncture, Herbal Medicine, Massage, Food Medicine and Martial Arts.

David has studied traditional medicines with healers in Asia, North and South America, and Hawai’i. With a Master’s Degree in traditional Chinese medicine, he has a working knowledge of more than 400 traditional Hawaiian, Chinese, and Western plants. A deep ecologist and Hawaiian native plant specialist, he has been a student of Hawaiian medicine under Kahu Kawika Ka’alakea, Kaipo Kaneakua and Na Kupuna ‘O Hawai’i since 1992.

Author of “Medicine at Your Feet: Healing Plants of the Hawaiian Kingdom” and “Wild Wisdom: Listening to Heart of Nature”, David is an expert on the medicinal plants of the tropics. He study, lectures and teaches on cross-cultural uses of plant medicines, environmental concerns, traditional plant gathering practices, and pragmatic approaches to health care. He is known for his off-beat sense of humor. He is often seen in Hawaiian rain forests wearing his favorite trash bag as a raincoat.


Rachel Sheehan, ND, LMT



Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine, Vancouver BC, Canada 2006. Licensed Massage Therapist, WA, 1996. BSc (Kinesiology) University of Ottawa, Canada 1988.

Rachel has been living in Japan for most of the last 14 years and has been in private practice as a Health Consultant in Wakayama City, Japan since 2006. During that time, she filled a locum position in Canada for 6 months, covering a busy naturopathic practice.

Fluent in Japanese, she is currently writing a book on detoxification for the general population with the intention of raising awareness levels.


Sarah West, LAc, Dipl Ac (NCCAOM)

1986 New England School of Acupuncture, Santa Fe College of Natural Medicine, 1982, International Training Center, Academy of Traditional Medicine, Beijing, 1992, M.S. in Oriental Medicine, Southwest Acupuncture College, 1993, Faculty member and Clinical Supervisor, Southwest Acupuncture College, 1985-1993; Chair, Department of Acupuncture, Southwest Acupuncture College, 1989-1993.

Examiner for Acupuncture Board of New Mexico and for National Council of Acupuncture Schools and Colleges. Faculty member, HICOM, 1995-present. Past HICOM Assistant Academic Dean and Director of Acupuncture.


Megan Yarberry, MOM, LAc, Dipl Ac, Dipl CH (NCCAOM)



B.A. (International Affairs/French), University of Puget Sound, 1987; Peace Corps Volunteer, Togo, West Africa 1988-90; M.A.O.M., Oregon College of Oriental Medicine, 1998; Dipl Ac. & Herbal. (NCCAOM) 1998; Acupuncture Detoxification Specialist, National Acupuncture Detoxification Association, 2000.

NADA Registered Trainer, 2009. Ms. Yarberry has a private practice in Hilo, HI 1999-present and has been working on international health and education projects in East Africa since 2005. Ms. Yarberry is the Academic Dean and an Instructor.