About Scottdale Family Acupuncture
Meet Our Team
A Note from our Director, Kiya Hunter:
To deliver the highest standard of complex care in Scottsdale, I have built a collaborative team of elite senior practitioners. We do not use a generalist model. My role as Director is to ensure your specific case is matched with the clinician whose decades of expertise perfectly align with your physiological needs. Please review our specialists below to see who is best suited for your care.
How It Works: Our Collaborative Care Model
While you will match with a primary practitioner based on your clinical needs and availability, you are never locked into just one schedule.
Our clinic operates on a completely unified medical charting system. Your history, treatment plan, and exact protocols are meticulously updated in real-time. This means if your schedule shifts, or if you need a treatment on a day your primary practitioner is out, you can seamlessly step into any other block. The practitioner on duty will know exactly where your case stands and deliver your precise protocol without missing a beat. You get the stability of a dedicated specialist with the scheduling flexibility of a full clinical team.
Kiya Hunter, MS, L.Ac.
Founder & Clinical Director
I grew up on a 100-acre farm in Eastern Oregon with a clear direction: I was going to be a doctor. While preparing for medical school, I practiced massage therapy to gain hands-on clinical experience. During that time, a mentor suggested acupuncture vertigo. After a single treatment, the vertigo was entirely gone. That definitive physiological shift changed my entire career trajectory.
I earned my Master of Science in Acupuncture from the Phoenix Institute of Herbal Medicine and Acupuncture (PIHMA) and have been practicing in Scottsdale for over a decade. As the Founder and Clinical Director of Scottsdale Family Acupuncture, I developed our practice's specialized framework for regulating complex, multi-system conditions.
Clinical Focus & Specialties
Within our practice, my personal clinical focus centers on reproductive health, immune regulation, and the delicate communication between the nervous system and hormones.
My primary areas of expertise include:
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Fertility & Women’s Health: Supporting couples through natural conception and regulating complex hormonal cycles.
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Pregnancy & Postpartum Care: Managing prenatal discomfort, preparing the body for labor, and helping mothers recover from postpartum pain, anxiety, and depletion.
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Autoimmune & Immune System Dysregulation: Calming overactive immune responses and helping the body find baseline stability when managing chronic autoimmune flare-ups.
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Anxiety & Nervous System Exhaustion: Using targeted physical inputs to shift the body out of chronic "fight-or-flight" loops and restore emotional and physiological resilience.
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Acupuncture Point Injection Therapy: Utilizing targeted biometric injections of sterile homeopathic, herbal, or nutritional compounds into specific acupuncture and trigger points to rapidly accelerate tissue healing, down-regulate inflammation, and provide deep systemic support.
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Unexplained Multi-System Cases: Investigating and treating complex, stubborn health conditions that defy conventional diagnoses. She specializes in connecting the dots between seemingly unrelated symptoms, such as overlapping nerve pain, digestive issues, and chronic fatigue, to map out a cohesive path to recovery.
As Clinical Director, my priority is ensuring our practice delivers an uncompromisingly high standard of focused, private care. Because complex conditions require highly targeted expertise, I have intentionally curated a team of senior practitioners who each bring 10 to 15+ years of distinct, specialized experience to the clinic. My role is to triage incoming cases and ensure your specific health history is matched with the practitioner on our team best equipped to solve it.
Erica Lyons, MS, L.Ac., MSOM
Senior Practitioner & Internal Medicine Specialist
My interest in clinical medicine began early. Watching my mother navigate a complex chronic illness sparked a profound fascination with human physiology: How does the body self-regulate? What specific inputs does it need to initiate recovery? Why do some physiological systems stall while others bounce back? This early exposure grounded my approach to medicine in clinical logic, tracking patterns of chronic dysfunction from a young age.
Later, facing my own complex health struggles, I discovered acupuncture. Experiencing a definitive shift from merely managing symptoms to actively restoring systemic health set a professional direction I have pursued ever since.
I hold a Master of Science in Acupuncture and a Master of Science in Oriental Medicine (MSOM) from the Phoenix Institute of Herbal Medicine and Acupuncture (PIHMA) and have been in clinical practice since 2016. My diagnostic approach seamlessly integrates the intricate, systemic logic of traditional Eastern medicine with a rigorous grounding in modern anatomy, physiology, and functional clinical science.
Clinical Focus & Specialties
Within our practice, Erica specializes in severe chronic pain and complex neurological conditions. She excels at treating cases where the nervous system has suffered significant trauma or disruption, and standard treatments have stalled.
Her primary areas of focus include:
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Severe & Complex Pain Management: Chronic pain loops, phantom pain, and long-standing structural issues that have not responded to conventional care.
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Complex Nervous System Disorders: Providing specialized clinical support for degenerative and autoimmune neurological conditions, including Multiple Sclerosis (MS).
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Stroke Recovery & Neurological Rehabilitation: Working to retrain the nervous system, restore lost function, and improve mobility and nerve communication after a neurological event.
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Nervous System Trauma: Helping the body down-regulate when the nervous system is stuck in a severe "fight or flight" loop following significant physical or psychological stress.
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Sports Injury & Orthopedic Rehabilitation: Treating acute and repetitive athletic injuries, including torn ligaments, tendonitis, joint strains, and muscle tears. She utilizes advanced neuro-functional electro-acupuncture to accelerate tissue healing, reduce localized inflammation, and restore proper biomechanical function.
Erica excels at working with patients who are navigating life-altering diagnoses. By combining traditional Eastern medical logic with a deep understanding of modern neuro-anatomy, she designs highly structured, step-by-step treatment plans to help rehabilitate the nervous system, reduce severe pain, and restore a person's quality of life.
Annette Raddatz, MS, L.Ac., Dipl. OM
Senior Practitioner & Neurological Specialist
I knew I wanted to be a doctor at eight years old, I just didn't know what kind yet. Growing up in Washington, I was surrounded by a community that looked at healthcare differently. At sixteen, a severe ski injury threatened my ACL, but holistic care got me back on the slopes without surgery. I went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Pre-Med from Idaho State University, with every intention of becoming a chiropractor.
During my last semester, a severe car accident left me completely immobile and in debilitating pain. Out of desperation, I tried acupuncture. After my very first treatment, I walked out of the clinic with full mobility. That profound physiological shift changed my direction entirely. I enrolled at the Phoenix Institute of Herbal Medicine and Acupuncture (PIHMA), graduating with a Master of Science in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine.
I have been in dedicated clinical practice for nearly twenty years. My own history taught me that the body possesses a capacity to heal that standard medicine consistently underestimates. My job is to help patients access that capacity, especially when they have been told they have run out of options.
Clinical Focus & Specialties
Within our practice, Annette leverages her two decades of clinical experience to treat highly stubborn nerve pain, complex trauma, and age-related physical decline.
Her primary areas of expertise include:
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Neuropathy & Nerve Pain: Reversing and managing peripheral neuropathy, numbness, tingling, and burning sensations in the hands and feet.
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Post-Traumatic Injury & Complex Pain: Rehabilitating the body after severe physical trauma, such as car accidents, surgical scarring, and long-standing chronic joint degeneration.
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Geriatric Medicine & Age-Related Care: Helping older adults maintain independence by safely managing common age-related conditions, including:
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Osteoarthritis and chronic joint stiffness
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Balance issues and fall prevention
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Circulatory issues and chronic swelling
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Age-related fatigue and sleep disturbances
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Annette is board-certified by the NCCAOM and is a member of the American Academy of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. She excels at working with patients who have been through significant physical wear-and-tear and need a seasoned, authoritative clinician who understands how to safely restore mobility and vitality to a complex system.
GROUNDED IN TRAINING: THE RIGOROUS STANDARDS OF MEDICAL CREDIBILITY.
A Transparent Look at the Multi-Year Graduate Education, Board Certifications, and Sterile Safety Protocols Defining Our Practice.
When you seek care for a complex, long-standing health issue or a stubborn structural injury, you deserve to know that your provider’s primary expertise is the exact treatment you are receiving. At Scottsdale Family Acupuncture, your health is managed with the highest level of professional accountability.
Acupuncture in Arizona is a strictly regulated healthcare profession. It is not a weekend certification, a brief addition to another practice, or a casual wellness routine.
Our practice operates under strict state medical oversight, requiring years of rigorous graduate-level training, multi-part national board examinations, and exhaustive clinical residency hours before a practitioner ever touches a patient. We believe that true clinical excellence requires an unhurried, uncompromising commitment to formal education, absolute sterility, and a decade of real-world results.
Arizona State Licensure
All practitioners at our clinic are licensed by the Arizona Acupuncture Board of Examiners. Licensure requires: Graduation from an approved acupuncture program Extensive classroom and biomedical training Hundreds of hours of supervised clinical practice Successful completion of national board examinations Background check and regulatory approval Ongoing continuing education to maintain licensure Arizona requires approximately: 1,850+ hours of formal training 800+ hours of supervised clinical experience Licensed acupuncturists are accountable to a state regulatory board and must adhere to professional standards of practice.
National Board Certification
Our practitioners hold national certification through the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM), the primary credentialing body for the profession in the United States.
Board certification requires:
Passing rigorous multi-part national examinations
Demonstrating competency in safety and clinical practice
Ongoing continuing education to maintain certification
Graduate-Level Medical Education
Acupuncture is not a short course or weekend training. Licensed acupuncturists complete a multi-year graduate program (Master’s level) focused specifically on acupuncture and related medical sciences.
Training includes:
Human anatomy and physiology
Neurology and musculoskeletal medicine
Pathology and internal medicine
Orthopedic assessment
Biomedical sciences
Pharmacology Safety procedures and contraindications
Extensive clinical rotations treating real patients
Programs require three to four years of full-time study.
Clean Needle Technique Certification
All practitioners are certified in Clean Needle Technique, a nationally recognized safety standard for acupuncture.
This training includes:
Infection prevention and control
Safe handling of sterile medical equipment
Proper skin preparation
Sharps disposal procedures
Management of rare adverse events
Acupuncture needles are:
Sterile Single-use Individually packaged
Disposed of immediately after treatment
No needles are ever reused.
A Collective 40+ Years of Clinical Experience
Every practitioner at our clinic has well over ten years of hands-on clinical experience. This experience includes working with both straightforward and complex cases, including patients who have not responded fully to conventional treatments.
Experience matters for:
Accurate assessment
Appropriate treatment planning
Recognizing when referral or co-management is needed
Delivering consistent, safe care
A Regulated Healthcare Profession
Licensed acupuncturists in Arizona are healthcare providers regulated by a state board.
This means practitioners must:
Follow established professional standards
Maintain continuing education
Practice within a defined scope
Carry professional liability insurance
Remain accountable for patient safety
How Acupuncture Training Differs From Short Certification Courses
Some healthcare professionals — including physicians, physical therapists, chiropractors, or naturopathic doctors — may receive additional training in acupuncture or dry needling through shorter certification programs. Requirements vary by profession and state. Licensed acupuncturists complete full graduate programs devoted specifically to acupuncture and related medical sciences, along with extensive supervised clinical training. Both pathways exist within healthcare. Our role is to provide care grounded in comprehensive, specialized training in this field.
Ongoing Continuing Education
Licensure and national certification require ongoing education throughout a practitioner’s career. This ensures providers stay current with:
Safety standards
Clinical research
Evolving treatment approaches
Professional best practices
Commitment to Safety and
Professional Care
Our clinic operates with medical-grade safety standards, including:
Single-use sterile needles only
Clean treatment environments
Proper sanitation protocols
Professional documentation and assessment
Patient-centered treatment planning
When performed by licensed practitioners, acupuncture has a strong safety record and is widely used as a complementary medical treatment worldwide.
Transparent, Safe, and Medically Credible Care.
You do not have to navigate your recovery with uncertainty. By grounding our clinical practice in extensive graduate-level training, strict sterile guidelines, and twenty years of combined clinical and manual expertise, we give your body a safe, predictable, and premium environment to truly heal.
If you have questions regarding our professional credentials, our safety standards, or whether our precise neuro-acupuncture protocols are appropriate for your specific structural or internal condition, our team is here to give you an honest, clear answer.
Questions About Acupuncture or Our Credentials? If you have questions about training, safety, or whether acupuncture is appropriate for your condition, our team is happy to discuss your concerns. Appointments can be scheduled online or by calling the clinic directly.