In epiosde 7 I am speaking with the powerhouse that is Mandy Gratzer. Mandy is a Perth based Acupuncturist who is passionate about helping new graduates enter the profession with knowledge, guidance and power. At the age of 18, she moved from Kununurra to Perth to study an Advanced Diploma of Traditional Chinese Medicine at the Perth Academy of Natural Therapies. After graduation Mandy promptly travelled to Hang Zhou, China where she completed an Internship under the supervision of numerous dual trained Doctors at the Hang Zhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine (and may have eaten a chicken foot or two!). This provided the best opportunity for bringing together the knowledge of the course in the most idyllic setting; laying the foundation for melding the theory and practice together. The Hang Zhou hospital integrates TCM and mainstream western medicine, allowing all interns the experience of working together for the greater good of the patient. As a result, this provides Mandy with the knowledge and experience to work holistically alongside standard Western health practices here in Australia. Upon completion, she moved to Darwin (her original home town), in order to set up a clinic in a town that she loved. After building a strong client base in Darwin, in 2007 an idea to share Chinese Medicine far and wide saw Mandy take her services to rural areas, developing regular clinics in Katherine & Kununurra. Those clinics ran for six years assisting 100’s of rural residents to achieve better health outcomes otherwise not available to them. Mandy serves on the WA State Committee of the Australian Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine Association and has spent the past 12 months building a mentorship program to support the next generation of acupuncturists with a course designed to help guide them through the beginnings of practice, titled A Guide to Setting up Clinic. You can connect with Mandy either through her podcast "the acupuncturists Biz Hub" or her website: https://hello.acupuncturistsbizhub.com/