| Motto | Protecting the Interests of the Ayurvedic Profession |
|---|---|
| Formation | 2000 |
| Type | professional association |
| Headquarters | administrative office: Albuquerque, New Mexico, corporate office: Santa Cruz, California |
| Advisors | Vasant Lad, BAM&S, MASc, Deepak Chopra, MD, Robert Svoboda, BAMS, David Frawley, DOM |
| Website | ayurveda-nama.org |
The National Ayurvedic Medical Association (NAMA), founded in 2000[1] is the largest association of Ayurvedic practitioners in the United States. It is charged with representing and supporting the profession of Ayurveda in the United States. Some of its activities include: Holding an annual conference; Lobbying to create national standards for Ayurvedic colleges and practitioners; Lobbying to create standards for a state license for Ayurvedic practitioners;[2] Making sure that Ayurvedic medicines used in the United States are safe;[3] Promoting the availability of professional liability insurance coverage for Ayurvedic practitioners; Supporting research into the study of Ayurveda.
Contents |
Since 2003 NAMA has held annual conferences on Ayurveda in different cities for Ayurvedic practitioners and the general public.[4] The conference offers continuing education programs, practicums and case study presentations. The conference is also a chance for businesses, colleges, retreat facilities and other vendors to share their Ayurvedic offerings.[5] Notable speakers include: Vasant Lad, Robert Svoboda, David Frawley, Yogini Shambhavi, Sarita Shrestha, David Simon, John Douillard and Marc Halpern.[6]
The National Ayurvedic Medical Association is open to everyone who supports the mission, purposes and goals of NAMA. There are different levels of membership for the general public, students of Ayurveda, Ayurvedic practitioners, corporations, educational institutions and donors.[7]
There are currently 12 colleges in the United States that meet the basic academic standards by NAMA for Ayurvedic practitioners. These standards include a minimum of 500 total education hours, including a minimum of 50 clinical internship hours.[8] Colleges that meet these requirements include: Alandi Ashram (Boulder, CO), The Ayurvedic Institute (Albuquerque, NM),[9] The California College of Ayurveda (Nevada City, CA),[10] Florida College of Integrative Health (Sarasota, FL), Kanyakumari Ayurveda Education (Milwaukee, WI), Kerala Ayurveda (Foster City, CA), Kripalu School of Ayurveda (Stockbridge, MA),[11] Mount Madonna Institute College of Ayurveda (Watsonville, CA), New World Ayurveda (Santa Barbara, CA) Rocky Mountain Institute of Yoga and Ayurveda (Boulder, CO), Sai Ayurvedic College (Miami, FL), Wise Earth School of Ayurveda Ltd. (Candler, NC)