Abstract
This report summarizes a ground-breaking workshop on the strategic direction of acupuncture research which was held in York in early July 2006. Three days were spent discussing the history, the philosophy and the practicalities of researching acupuncture. Attending the workshop were an international group of researchers with varied backgrounds, including acupuncturists, physicians, physiotherapists, sociologists and anthropologists. Supported by the Medical Research Council's Health Services Research Collaboration, Elsevier and others, this workshop was an opportunity to brainstorm the issues and to the concerns in the field and set out directions for research that would tackle some of the major challenges facing the acupuncture research community.