Melissa is licensed by the Florida Board of Health as an Acupuncture Physician AP2051 and is nationally board certified in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM ®) 26056 since 2004. She is certified by the National Acupuncture Detoxification Association NADA.
In 2019, Melissa achieved an advanced Doctorate in Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine, a DAHM (Doctor of Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine) with a focus on Integrative Oncology, specifically Breast Cancer and the utilization of Acupuncture to enhance quality of life and tolerability to oncological treatment. Her academic poster in partnership with Mayo Clinic Florida and the Seattle Institute of East Asian Medicine “Evaluation of the Utilization of Acupuncture Preventatively in Patients at a high risk of developing Chemotherapy Induced Peripheral Neuropathy: A Retrospective Case Series” was accepted in 2020 for presentation at the Academic Consortium for Integrative Medicine and Health. She completed training in somatic informed trauma therapy, an East meets West approach to restoring balance and regulation in survivors of traumatic stress.
February 2017 Melissa was honored to be credentialed as an Acupuncture Physician with hospital status as an Advanced Practice Professional by Mayo Clinic Florida. She was an integral part of the team who implemented a successful Integrative Medicine and Health (IMH) Acupuncture pilot program within the Jacoby Center for Breast Health. In 2019 Dr. Jordan was brought on as the sole full time provider and lead Acupuncture Physician in order to expand the Integrative Medicine and Health Department to offer services in the Mangurian Oncology Center then to the Davis Building as part of the division General Internal Medicine Integrative Medicine and Health opening access to care to all patients of the clinic as well as the staff. Melissa provided Acupuncture treatments at Mayo Clinic from February 2017 to May 2024.
In the fall of 2004, she opened her private practice in Jacksonville, Florida. In January 2006 her clinic and raw/readymade herbal dispensary settled into a beautiful 1920s converted CRO home near the San Marco library. Her clinic remained at that location until January 2020. She continued accommodating private practice patients in the Mandarin area of Jacksonville on Saturdays through June 2021.
She began her medical educational journey in North East Pennsylvania in 1994. She worked in a triage care unit at Sacred Heart Hospital as a Nurses Aid and on call EKG technician. She graduated in 1998 with a Bachelor’s in Biology/Pre-Medicine. After visiting various Medical schools, taking her MCATs and hospital experience, Melissa decided her calling to medicine was in a slightly different direction; she continued her path to become a healer while maintaining deep roots in evidence-based science and medicine. In 1998 she was accepted into the Naturopathic Medical program at Basyr University in Seattle, Washington. In 1999 she was dual enrolled in the Naturopathic Medical Program and the Masters of Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine through the end of Summer semester 2001. She transferred to the Seattle Institute of Oriental Medicine early Fall of 2001 to deepen her studies. Melissa graduated from the Seattle Institute of Oriental Medicine (SIOM) in August 2004 with a Masters of Science in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine MSAOM. SIOM is one of the top educational institutions renowned for apprentice style and clinical training for practitioners and providers of Traditional East Asian Medicine. Traditional East Asian Medicine modalities are rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine and philosophy, a comprehensive, integrative, natural healthcare system with a history dating back over 3000 to 5000 years.
Dr. Jordan’s training includes Traditional Chinese Acupuncture, Traditional Chinese Herbal Medicine and custom compounding formulations by differential diagnosis unique to the person in that moment in time, Traditional Japanese Acupuncture, Food therapy and Culinary Medicine, Body work: Tuina (Traditional Chinese Massage), Cupping, Moxibustion, Gua sha (a Dermal Friction Technique), Qi Gong (guided and supported relaxation and stress relieving techniques), Taichi (movement and meditation based exercise practice), lifestyle modification(s) recommendations geared towards improving quality of life and addressing root cause(s), somatic experience informed trauma therapy, as well as Translation, Interpretation and Clinical Application of published Chinese: Classical, Modern and Research published in Chinese related to Traditional East Asian theory, practice, research and clinical application.
Her clinical expertise includes fertility enhancement, women’s health, anxiety, depression, post traumatic syndrome prolonged/chronic, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, chronic cough, fatigue, pain, and improving quality of life as well as improving tolerability to treatment (e.g. chemotherapy, radiation, medical side effects). Her goal as a healer is to support each individual to thrive.
Fun facts: Melissa is licensed by the FCC as a FM Radio DJ. She had a radio show every Thursday evening from 1994-1998 in Allentown, Pennsylvania. She has led guided meditations for individuals or groups. She has a passion for botany, pharmacognosy/phytomedicine, sustainable edible functional seasonal gardening, sourcing and supporting local foods and plants, and creating delicious recipes and meals to support mind, body and spirit.