The Big Island of Hawaii is known as the Healing Island, its juxtaposition of sea and mountains long recognized as having produced a land of gentle and healing energies. That healing environment is particularly present in North Kohala, the ancient training place for Hawaiian healers and today the home of the Traditional Chinese Medical College of Hawaii. From tropical beaches to snow-topped Mauna Kea, the Healing Island well deserves its description as a bit of Paradise, and TCMCH is fortunate to share that beauty and the Island's healing tradition. Thanks to its remarkable modern history, Hawaii Island has become a center of healing, a place where native Hawaiian healing traditions have fused with Eastern and Western medical practices to create an international center of innovative treatment based on centuries of accumulated knowledge. Hawaii’s modern era began in 1779, when the English sea captain James Cook arrived in the Islands and sparked the beginning of Hawaii’s contact with the Western world. When he arrived, Cook observed that the Hawaiian people were strong and healthy. Sadly, that picture changed as sailors from whaling ships, missionaries from New England, and diplomats and businessmen from every corner of the world began to pour into the Islands. The newcomers brought diseases (small pox, measles, diphtheria, leprosy, tuberculosis and venereal diseases) to which the native population had no immunity. Kahunas were powerless against these unfamiliar diseases and missionary doctors scorned the holistic practices of native healers. (Ironically, most of the medical treatments of those early missionary doctors are today considered worthless, while the healing methods of the ancient Hawaiians are increasingly being validated.) In the latter part of the 19th century, large sugar plantations were developed on most of the Hawaiian Islands, and thousands of Chinese, Japanese and Filipino workers journeyed to Hawaii to work in the cane fields. Many of these immigrants brought with them the traditional healing methods and beliefs of their homelands. The Chinese brought acupuncture, practiced in Asia for 5,000 years. Like the healing of Hawaiian kahuna, acupuncture is based on a spiritual and holistic approach to wellness. There are now over 300 licensed acupuncturists in the Islands, about 50 on the Big Island.

Then there is mana, a vital spiritual energy deriving from the core of the earth and pouring out from the vents of Kilauea, spreading its life-giving force across the entire island. Native Hawaiians, with their belief in the union of matter and spirit, have long recognized the healing properties of the landscape. Through trial and error, the kahuna devised herbal formulas to treat a wide variety of diseases and then passed these cures down through succeeding generations. Like modern medicine, the ancient healing art of the kahuna was highly specialized. The kahuna ho`ohanau keiki delivered babies, the kahuna haha diagnosed by palpation, and the kahuna la`au lapa`au prescribed medicinal herbs. Their concept of lokahi, or harmony of mind, body and spirit, is reflected in traditional healing arts such as lomi lomi and la`au lapa`au, which today are widely accepted and practiced in Hawaii. In fact, modern medicine is finally beginning to recognize and appreciate the effectiveness of many of the ancient Hawaiian healing arts.

North Hawaii is often referred to as a center of healing. This College is the oldest institution among the several that pursue various aspects of health care and related areas. Another institution is Five Mountains Hawaii (http://www.fivemountainshawaii.org/community.htmll), dedicated to conscious healthy living and sustainability that integrates mind, body, spirit, nature and community. They encourage sustainable sources of economic vitality and an integrated holistic approach to health which blends Western (traditional allopathic), Eastern (traditional Chinese, Ayurvedic etc.), and native healing traditions. The research arm of Five Mountains is the North Hawaii Outcomes Project (http://www.nhop.org/). They convene community focus groups, collect data and organize community meetings to set priorities and identify strategies for improvement. Tutu’s House (www.tutushouse.org) is a unique institution that encourages self-directed health education. It provides health related resources, support groups, wellness workshops, and a library of works on Western and complimentary medicine. TCMCH students and faculty have presented a number of educational talks at Tutu's House over the past nine years. Tutu’s House is also the home of the HealthMaps program. HealthMaps is a computer-oriented service that teaches people how to use the internet to find health information on their own. It also helps people to create a personalized health map to follow in caring for themselves and improving their health status. North Hawaii Community Hospital (http://northhawaiicommunityhospital.org/) is the first American hospital to strive to integrate the latest Western, technology-based medicine with ancient Hawaiian, Asian, and holistic healing arts. NHCH attempts a patient-centered care that treats the whole person - mind, body, and spirit - in the context of family, culture, and community. For example, the hospital makes use of LDRP birthing rooms so that all stages of birth take place in the same room and the baby never has to go to a nursery. Mothers receive aromatherapy and water laboring; the family can even stay overnight. Beginning in 2008 TCMCH will have a faculty shift at the hospital, providing students with direct observation and experience of acupuncture as administered in a hospital setting. The Kohala Center (http://kohalacenter.org) supports educational and research programs on the Healing Island, with particular emphasis on environmental and complementary medical projects. They work on issues such as green building, conservation development, K-12 environmental education, ocean sciences and global medicine. In the southern part of our island is the Native Hawaiian Center and Clinic (http://www.kahunahaleolono.org/). The mission of Ka Leo `O Na Kahuna Lapa`au `O Hawai`i is to restore, protect, develop and advance the healing arts and science of Hawaii's traditional people. Today treatment centers, holistic spas, and healers of all kinds are offering their services to visitors as well as to local residents. Partly due to the many stressed vacationers who want to work on wellness during their time off, and partly due to the vast number and variety of practitioners who settle here, the opportunities for clinical variety and wellness experiences are myriad. They range from a lava-heated education and wellness facility to rainforest retreats to luxury full-service resorts on the dry West coast to a tropical yoga sanctuary to a Buddhist temple and retreat. Services offered include such diverse techniques as ayurvedic, lomilomi, shamanism, and many types of energetic therapies. Wellness travelers may stay in inexpensive lodges and experience integrated multi-day alternative healing regimens; tourists can escape to a private working cattle ranch and ride between massages and acupuncture; or for an adventure in indulgence vacationers can lie on the beach all day, taking breaks for lomi lomi and facials. Many TCMCH students and graduates provide health services in this sector. A Few Things to Think About: The Big Island is home to Kilauea, an active volcano that erupts occasionally and emits vog (volcanic smog containing sulfur dioxide) into the atmosphere. To learn more about vog, please find more info at the State of Hawaii Department of Health website's article: Precautionary Measures for Elevated Sulfur Dioxide Levels on the Big Island (link to: http://hawaii.gov/health/environmental/air/cab/cab_precautions.html). Another health concern that prospective students should be aware of is the presence of Depleted Uranium on the island's military training area. Depleted Uranium is a radioactive material which is the by product of the nuclear energy industry. This material is used in the manufacture of weapons and as shielding for armored vehicles. The Hawaii legislature has chosen the Big Island as the new home for the Stryker brigade, and they will be conducting live fire training at Pohakuloa which is the island's designated military training area. Please compare and contrast the various reports about the seriousness of DU at the following Google Search. (link to: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=depleted+uranium+big+island&btnG=Google+Search).