Ways to Learn Zhu's Scalp Acupuncture
Acupuncturists looking for a scalp Acupuncture course usually want to know three things. Can I learn it online, is there a course near me, and will I come away certified? This page maps the ways SustainHealth Academy teaches Zhu's Scalp Acupuncture, what each one can teach you, and where each one stops.
Why the hands-on part can't move online
Zhu's Scalp Acupuncture (ZSA) is a needling skill as much as a body of theory. You have to find each zone on a real scalp, insert the needle at the right angle to a specific layer of the scalp, apply the stimulation methods ZSA calls Jin Qi and Chou Qi, and then guide Dao Yin while you watch how the patient responds.
A video can show all of that. It can't feel your needle or see where your hand drifted. Every head is a different size and shape, and zone location is where most errors start. At Basics, our teachers often correct where participants locate Du 20 and the anatomical landmarks, the first step in locating the zones.
That is why SustainHealth Academy doesn't teach ZSA online, and why it can't be learned from books. As we explained in our March 2026 webinar, in the room the teachers correct your stimulation as you work, including how much force to use and at what frequency. Jin Qi and Chou Qi are also applied in different degrees, and as Dr Scott Ling said in July 2026, the degree is learned in person. Needling direction for each zone is the same kind of detail, which is why Basics uses a head model.
Dao Yin is the other part. Dr Scott Ling recalls asking Professor Ming Qing Zhu what matters most in learning the method. The answer was Dao Yin, which takes many forms and calls for judgement that needle placement alone doesn't teach.
And the live patient demonstrations at the core of the training are not recorded, to protect patient privacy. Each one shows the whole treatment, from how the teacher approaches the patient, through needling and Dao Yin, to how the session ends. Dr Scott Ling calls seeing this the quickest way to shorten your learning curve.
Basics, the in-person starting point
Basics of Zhu's Scalp Acupuncture is a three-day course and the first step for everyone. Dr Ru Shan Shy and Dr Sheng Chun Chang, direct disciples of Professor Ming Qing Zhu, teach every hour of it. There is no prerequisite, and no previous scalp Acupuncture experience is needed.
The format is built around supervised practice. About 40% of each day is hands-on, and you practise zone location on a head model and on each other. Across the three days there are 16 live patient demonstrations, with the teachers explaining their reasoning. Numbers are capped, at 30 participants for Melbourne 2027, so both teachers can reach everyone. Basics is taught in Chinese with English translation throughout.
Dr Scott Ling explained in our May 2026 webinar that when Basics was restructured with Dr Shy and Dr Chang, hands-on time went up because Acupuncturists need to feel the manipulation.
Many Acupuncturists repeat Basics, and in the same webinar that was the advice, because one course rarely takes in everything and later courses build on it. One graduate who first trained with us in 2018 found it hard at first, and said in-person correction from the teachers, then repeating the course, made the difference.
If you're searching for a course near you, Basics travels. It has run in Melbourne, Bali, Amsterdam and Los Angeles, with Los Angeles scheduled again for November 2026. The hub page lists the next cities and dates as they're confirmed.
The Advanced courses
After Basics, five Advanced courses each take the system into one clinical area.
- Neurology, Movement & Pain
- Stroke & Brain Injury
- Women's & Paediatric Health
- Internal Medicine & Supportive Cancer Care
- Inflammation, Immunity & Healthy Longevity
You choose by the patients you see most. Stroke & Brain Injury last ran in Melbourne in October 2025, over three days with 19.5 CPD points. Earlier versions of two others ran with Professor Ming Qing Zhu in 2018 and 2019. Format, requirements and dates for each are published as each course is scheduled.
Guided Clinical Training
Guided Clinical Training is a separate one-day, one-on-one, hands-on clinical internship, open any time after Basics and to anyone who studied ZSA with Professor Ming Qing Zhu. You treat real patients with the skills from Basics. You take the history, propose the treatment, needle while Dr Shy and Dr Chang correct your hands, and reassess. A day can include up to 20 patient cases, with no more than five participants.
At Basics you practise on classmates. Here the correction is one to one, on a real patient, while you treat. It suits anyone who wants to put their skills into practice quickly. Some take it straight after Basics. Most treat their own patients first, then come back with questions to refine their diagnosis, zone selection, needling technique and Dao Yin.
It has run four times in Melbourne, in April and October 2025 and in April and August 2026. It carries 6 CPD points.
Webinars
SustainHealth Academy runs ZSA webinars live on Zoom, usually for an hour to an hour and a half. Dr Shy and Dr Chang present most of them, usually with Dr Scott Ling hosting. They cover theory and case discussion, and end with questions from the audience. Each carries 1 CPD point. Some are in English and some are in Chinese with English translation.
Past topics include post-stroke paralysis, Parkinson's and tremor, paediatric neurology, and ZSA as a neuro-regulation system. Recordings are not publicly available, so join the next one live. Upcoming sessions appear on the webinars page.
Webinars are a good way to hear how the teachers reason before you commit to a course, and to keep up between courses. They won't teach you to needle. Technique questions, such as how to assess speech the ZSA way in our May 2026 webinar, are referred to the course.
The Colour Atlas and books
The Colour Atlas of Zhu's Scalp Acupuncture, by Professor Ming Qing Zhu and Moyee Siu, is the reference for the zone map. Its layered colour plates show each zone over the anatomy beneath it. It comes in English and Chinese hardcover editions. The shop also stocks Fundamentals of Zhu's Scalp Acupuncture in a Chinese edition.
Asked in our May 2026 webinar what to read, the answer was the Atlas, to get familiar with the zones. It is a great preparation tool and pre-reading for Basics. The zone images in our webinars come from it.
The Atlas is a bench reference. It shows you where the zones are. Locating them accurately on a patient, and knowing which to choose, comes from supervised training.
About certification
Many Acupuncturists search for a scalp Acupuncture certification. SustainHealth Academy does not currently offer a ZSA certification. Each course carries CPD points and a certificate of completion.
CPD recognition depends on where you practise. Each course page lists the bodies that approved its points, such as AACMA and ACUNZ for Australia and New Zealand, or CAB and NCBAHM for the United States. Check with your own registration body how the points count for you.
Which route suits you
If you're new to scalp Acupuncture, start with Basics, then the Advanced course closest to your patients. Add Guided Clinical Training whenever you're ready.
If you learned scalp Acupuncture elsewhere, start with Basics too. Different scalp systems use different maps, and one complete map learned in order is easier to use consistently than pieces of several. Many arrive having tried ZSA from a book or online.
If you studied ZSA with Professor Ming Qing Zhu years ago, Basics with Dr Shy and Dr Chang works as a refresher, and Guided Clinical Training is open to you.
If you can't travel yet, join a webinar and get the Atlas. You'll understand the system better. Wait for supervised hands-on training before you use ZSA needling with patients.
Start with Basics
Every route begins with Basics. See where Basics runs next, or read the hub for the full journey.