Hugh MacPherson, PhD

Currently Professor of Acupuncture Research at the University of York, Hugh MacPherson trained as a practitioner of acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine in the early 1980’s He continues to practice acupuncture in York. He founded the Northern College of Acupuncture, where he continues to be involved as Chair of Trustees. In 1997 he became Research Director at the Foundation for Research into Traditional Chinese Medicine, a base from which he launched his career in research, in collaboration with colleagues from the University of Sheffield. He was awarded a post-doctoral fellowship by the Department of Health in 2003, based at the Department of Health Sciences, University of York. Since then his research into acupuncture has included safety studies, clinical trials and systematic reviews. His trials have evaluated the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of acupuncture for a variety of conditions, including low back pain, irritable bowel syndrome, depression and chronic neck pain. He has also conducted neuroimaging studies exploring potential mechanisms of acupuncture. He is lead editor of the book, “Acupuncture research: strategies for building an evidence base” and co-editor of, “The integration of East Asian medicine into contemporary healthcare”, both published by Elsevier..