Former Faculty

Frank He obtained his Bachelors and Masters degrees’ in Medicine from the Department of Acupuncture at Liaoning University of TCM, in the People’s Republic of China. He won every scholarship available at his medical school and graduated Summa Cum Laude. He currently is a DAOM Fellow at Five Branches University.

Frank was raised in a remote village in northern China. He spent two years in family practice with his grandfather in the early 1980s, then began practicing there as a barefoot doctor in 1986. In the village, Frank treated various conditions not commonly seen in the city. The village offered a family practice setting where he worked as a general practitioner for children and adults.

Frank knows sports and how to treat sports injuries. He was a champion decathlete while in medical school and was an amateur boxer for five years. He has helped thousands of patients return to the sports field, including weekend warriors and Olympic gold medalists. Active in athletic activities in the greater Bay Area, Frank has won medals in track and field, and won the Nankai Cup volleyball tournament.

Frank is a Qualified Medical Evaluator (QME) appointed by the State of California, one of the few actively practicing Acupuncturist-QMEs among over 10,000 acupuncturists. Frank has earned a reputation for his extensive knowledge, skills and passion. Radiologists often refer to him as “Frank He, MD” because of his superior clinical judgment. Well published and respected in the field, he is an international lecturer traveling around the world to promote acupuncture and Chinese medicine. Frank has appeared in numerous local and national publications – particularly in the areas of sports medicine, anti-aging, stress management, seniors’ health, and women’s health.

Frank has a patent pending approval for a specially engineered acupuncture needle and has developed a unique acupuncture technique called Muscle Channel Technique (MCT)™ which has clinically proven to be effective in pain management and injury healing. Professor He teaches in the Department of TCM Acupuncture and is a faculty member of the DAOM program.

Growing up as a member of a distinguished medical family in southern China, Jeffrey Pang was privately educated to join a lineage of traditional Chinese doctors spanning several generations. In 1968, he received his M.D. (training in both Western medicine and TCM) from the Sun Yat Sen University of Medical Sciences located in Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China. In 1984, Jeffrey emigrated to the U.S. and became a licensed acupuncturist in California. His experience includes ten years of clinical practice in Guangzhou and Hong Kong hospitals, and 25 years of private practice. A principal member of the Five Branches’ faculty since its inception in 1984, Professor Pang leads the review and development of Five Branches TCM curriculum as Theory and Herbology Department Head. He has been a contract acupuncturist with Kaiser Hospital, and Santa Teresa Pain Management Center since 1997 and currently maintains a private practice in San Jose, California. His areas of specialization include joint pain, visual disturbances, dermatological diseases and immune system disorders. Jeffrey balances his full-time TCM career with Taiji exercises, camping in Yosemite, swimming and planting fruit trees from cuttings given to him by his students. Professor Pang teaches in the Departments of TCM Theory, TCM Herbology, TCM Clinical Medicine and TCM Clinical Training and is a faculty member of the Five Branches DAOM program.

Susanna Shen graduated from Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in the People’s Republic of China in 1986, where she trained in both Western and Traditional Chinese medicine. After graduation, she worked as a TCM doctor in a Chinese hospital, supervising interns and teaching TCM Theory. When she came to the U.S., Susanna worked at the Pain Management Center in Los Angeles and later taught at the American College of TCM in the Bay Area.

Since 1996, Susanna has returned to China every summer to work and train in hospitals and clinics, sharpening her skills in needling techniques, TCM gynecology, facial rejuvenation and aging prevention, and the treatment of rare and difficult diseases using TCM and herbs. Her specialties include chronic fatigue, GI disorders, stress, facial rejuvenation, gynecology and internal medicine. Susanna enjoys photography, travel, and cooking.

Susanna Shen teaches in the Departments of TCM Herbology and TCM Clinical Training.