John McDonald began studying acupuncture in 1971 in Sydney, Australia. In 1975, John combined his role as a registered psychiatric nurse with his acupuncture training to develop an acupuncture programme for the New South Wales Health Commission’s Drug Dependency Service, to alleviate signs and symptoms of acute narcotic withdrawal with ear acupuncture.

In 1977, John began teaching acupuncture and has been involved in acupuncture education ever since. John completed a Master of Acupuncture with Distinction at the University of Western Sydney in 2006.

In 2015, John completed a Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Medicine at Griffith University, Gold Coast where he continues to be an Adjunct Senior Lecturer. John’s PhD thesis was entitled “The effects of acupuncture on mucosal immunity in the upper respiratory tract”. John co-authored “Zang Fu Syndromes: Differential Diagnosis and Treatment” with Dr Joel Penner which was also published in Brazil in a Portuguese edition.