Interview With AIA Founding Member Raphael D'Angelo M.D. By Gergely Hollódi
Pg. 38-42 - 4-minute read
The term aromatherapy was coined by René-Maurice Gattefossé in the 1930s and first appeared in print with the publication of his book, Aromathérapie: Les Huiles Essentielles, Hormones Végétales in French, first published in English in 1993. Many enthusiastic and professional people – coming from a scientific background or not – lay out the path for education and popularising aromatherapy in the coming decades. We experience a changing world around us with many challenges and changing trends in and around our beloved 'therapy' that was initially built on the healing properties of essential oils. With a newer generation evolving, we wanted to know about the individuals – or we can call them pioneers or GIANTS – who worked effortlessly to get this field accepted. In this edition, Aromatika editor-in-chief Gergely Hollódi interviewed Raphael D'Angelo M.D., who started his career as a medical doctor and aftter practising aromatherapy, with his wife Nancy and fellow pratitioners he founded the Alliance of International Aromatherapist (AIA) in 2006.
What is your first memory about your first contact with essential oils?
I must go back to my early childhood experiences. My Hungarian mother was very holistic, and I had childhood asthma. She used the essential oil of Eucalyptus globulus to help reduce my breathing difficulty. She would saturate a cloth with the essential oil and hold it near my nose and mouth to ease my breathing.
Where did you start your career?
My career in the health care field began in 1965 with the United States Air Force as a medical technologist. After training, I was assigned to a large hospital in Vietnam for one year, where I spent most of my time in microbiology. It was quite an experience learning first-hand about serious infections and parasitic diseases brought in by soldiers out in the field.
On my return to the States, I completed premedical studies at Oklahoma State University and was accepted into medical school on an Air Force scholarship, graduating with the Doctor of Medicine degree in 1976 from the University of Oklahoma. During medical school, I also worked part-time as a medical technologist and pathology assistant. My goal was to become a pathologist, but the Air Force needed family physicians. After a three-year residency in family medicine, I gave them four years as a family physician. Upon entering civilian private practice in 1982 in Eastern Oklahoma, I began my holistic education, adopting a more holistic approach to helping others.
You were a founding member of the Alliance of International Aromatherapists (AIA). Can you tell us about the organization, AIA's goals and achievements, and your work there?
In my years of teaching aromatherapy, the graduate students wanted more interaction
with the teaching program and other aromatherapists. My wife Nancy organized a gathering of interested aromatherapy students and others at a Greek restaurant. We called these monthly meetings Aromatics in Action (AIA). This became the basis of an actual aromatherapy conference in Denver, Colorado, in 2005. To help pay for this, the attendees became members. This conference came together with three people: Nancy D'Angelo, Laraine Pounds, and me. To help this membership organization move forward after the conference, it was clear that we needed to become a not-for-profit organization. Beverly
Day joined the three of us, along with Lora Cantele, and the 501C(3) nonprofit Alliance
of International Aromatherapists (AIA) was formed in 2006. I became its first president. Our mission statement was Moving Aromatherapy Forward with Vision and Action.We had our first conference in 2007 and have held one every two years since, plus a bonus conference in 2008. This year we celebrate our 20th anniversary. We felt that a solid professional education in the art and science of aromatherapy was essential. Educational programs would need
to meet high standards to be recognized as schools. We all helped with the formation
of different committees, and as a medical doctor, we drew many clinically-minded
individuals from nursing and other health-related fields. I am happy to say that we
made inroads into a diversity of healthcare settings, including hospitals, nursing facilities,
hospice, and training of health professionals in aromatherapy.
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