about

David is available Monday to Friday by appointment only.

It was at age 14 that I was drawn into the world of classical Chinese medicine, having been infatuated with east-asian philosophy and martial arts. I worked closely with a number of existing practitioners, finished my schooling, and immediately enrolled and completed my undergraduate studies at the Sydney Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine (SITCM). Following this I located to Hefei City, Anhui (China), working and learning in the Anhui 2nd TCM hospital. Here I was first exposed to serious chronic and complicated diseases and how effective Chinese medicine can be (and where my style name, 百川 Bai Chuan, or “Hundred Rivers" was bestowed to me). With a thirst for knowledge I returned to Australia and undertook my master’s degree in advanced acupuncture and neurophysiology at RMIT University, Melbourne and later qualitative research at UTS (an unfinished PhD).

My goal from my original introduction to acupuncture and Chinese medicine was (and remains) to fully immerse and comprehend classical Chinese life, its ideologies, philosophies, culture, and above all, medicine. Much of the study mentioned above merely gave me the right to practice, rather than true insight into classical clinical efficacy. It is for this reason I undertook many years of clinical training with a number of teachers, including, my first teacher and physician: neigong master John Dolic (26 + years of tutelage), my acupuncture teacher Dr. David Tai who, over the last 18 years, has guided my studies and transmitted classical knowledge to me and in many ways moulded my practice, 5 years during my undergraduate and post graduate studies with Dr. Daniel Deng, and Dr. Hoc Ku Huynh who both showed me the workings of a successful clinic and whose friendships I cherish.

I have been incredibly fortunate to have connected with amazing teachers and practitioners all over the globe, leading to the development of my own teaching platform, the Institute of Neijing Research (INR). I have also taught undergraduate acupuncture at the Sydney Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine (SITCM) for over 20 years, developing their acupuncture curriculum, teaching diagnostics, and most importantly the Neijing methods to future physicians. In addition I was fortunate to be a consultant visiting practitioner to Royal North Shore Hospital Spinal Injury Unit and Royal Rehab Sydney, Spinal Injury and Stroke Rehabilitation Unit. My studies in martial arts and cultivation practices has never ceased, holding part of the current Liangshi Baguazhang lineage (through John Dolic), a black belt in Brazilian Jiujitsu at VT1 Academy under Liam Resnekov, and an instructor in Floro Fighting Systems (under Ray Floro). Neigong, or internal cultivation, is a major part of my daily life, working on breathing methods, tea meditations, stretching and guiding practices, and both seated and standing stance meditation work.