J. R. Worsley is credited with bringing five element acupuncture, also known as 'classical acupuncture' or 'traditional acupuncture' (to distinguish it from the more widely-known Traditional Chinese medicine

Traditional Chinese medicine

Traditional Chinese Medicine refers to a broad range of medicine practices sharing common theoretical concepts which have been developed in China and are based on a tradition of more than 2,000 years, including various forms of herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage , exercise , and dietary therapy...

 ("TCM") style of acupuncture

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is a type of alternative medicine that treats patients by insertion and manipulation of solid, generally thin needles in the body....

), to the West. For many years he resided in the UK, where he opened an acupuncture training school, which trained many of the leading five element practitioners practising today, including Dianne Connelly and Bob Duggan, who now head the Tai Sophia Institute (formerly The Traditional Acupuncture Institute) in Laurel, Maryland

Laurel, Maryland

Laurel is a city in northern Prince George's County, Anne Arundel County, and Howard County, Maryland, United States, located midway between Washington, D.C. and Baltimore. Incorporated in 1870, the city maintains a historic district including its Main Street...

, USA. He was also responsible for starting the Academy for Five Element Acupuncture ("AFEA") in Gainesville, Florida

Gainesville, Florida

Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...

, USA, and had ties to the acupuncture training school in Boulder, Colorado

Boulder, Colorado

Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...

, USA. Today, his wife, Judy Becker Worsley, carries on the five element acupuncture tradition, training and certifying practitioners in schools she endorses. J. R. Worsley's influence was widely cited by others within the five element tradition, including Peter Eckmann, author of In the Footsteps of the Yellow Emperor.

Sources

• Kite Clinic -- London, UK
• Worsley Acupuncture site
• Academy for Five Element Acupuncture -- Gainesville, Florida, USA
• Tai Sophia Institute -- Laurel, MD
• The Institute of Taoist Education and Acupuncture -- Boulder, Colorado, USA
• School of Five Element Acupuncture -- London, UK
• London Institute of Five-Element Acupuncture -- London, UK
• Oriental Medical World Mourns Passing of Professor J. R. Worsley (article)
• List of Five Element Acupuncture Practitioners Worldwide
• Wu Hsing Tao School, Seattle, WA
• Worsley Institute