our story

Dr. Fialko is a licensed acupuncturist and licensed massage therapist with a 20 year passion for bodywork since graduating from Finger Lakes School of Massage in Ithaca, NY in 2004. Through working in various settings over the span of her career, her focus and strength became using therapeutic bodywork for pain relief, mobility, and rehabilitation. Attending a massage therapy program heavy in shiatsu (a massage technique based on the Chinese medicine system of channels) started a long and destined journey to a master's degree in acupuncture from FLSAOM at NYCC in Seneca Falls, NY (now Northeast College of Health Sciences). In the years prior to going to the acupuncture program, she attended different workshops on shiatsu, cupping, and five element theory.  She was thrilled to incorporate tuina, the Chinese medicine style of bodywork into her massage practice while finishing her acupuncture degree. While she no longer offers massage therapy treatments on their own, she will always have a passion for bodywork and incorporates it into her acupuncture treatments. 

Since starting her acupuncture practice in 2020, and gaining diplomate status with the NCCAOM (which requires multiple board exams and continuing education), her specialties have been shaped by her community's needs. Her practice has been focused on longevity, increased quality of life, and the treatment of stress and various internal medicine complaints. Ayla is passionate about quality care and will utilize a variety of modalities to ensure the best possible result.

Ayla's additional educational experiences inform her current practice. She received her bachelor's degree from State University of New York at Fredonia, where she studied music therapy, voice, and psychology. Her studies in dance, as well as classical singing, and a passion for weightlifting allow her to address posture, breathing, and body awareness in her patients. She is the type of practitioner that is adamant about making the choices herself that she is encouraging her patients to do. She also wants to show that it is possible to live comfortably in a body that is well taken care of and to teach everyone the power they have over their wellness. There is so much one can do to better their health and wellbeing, and she wants everyone to realize that potential. 

In 2023, Ruby Acupuncture Clinic was the recipient of the city of Cortland's Microenterprise Assistance Program grant, receiving $25,000 to expand and upgrade the clinic. The goals of which were to have the equipment to accommodate a wider range of patients, equip the clinic to create room for additional practitioners, and to expand the range of services provided as well as lead to more community involvement in the future. The grant provided the funds to attend additional continuing education classes for sound therapy and pelvic floor acupuncture. Ayla is now a certified Ohm Therapeutics practitioner and completed a series of integrative health trainings through the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine.  

She pursued the doctorate in acupuncture in an effort to do her part to elevate the acupuncture profession as a whole and gain specific skills as a health care provider to better function in the modern healthcare system. Her professional passions are business and practice management, patient education, and expanded access to healthcare. Her personal pursuits are qigong practice, cooking, and one day building a tiny home in the woods to care for llamas and goats. She is excited to pursue publishing in her field, expanding her YouTube channel and developing continuing education for massage therapists and acupuncturists. 

In the past, Ayla has worked alongside an acupuncturist, a chiropractor, massage therapists, and Reiki practitioners. She appreciates all of the connections that she has made along the way and in 2023 started a coalition group for the local massage therapists. She has been practicing in Cortland, NY since 2009, and has been at her current location in the McNeil building since fall of 2019, with the most recent large scale office renovation in the summer of 2022. Ayla piloted Kamala Therapeutic Services since 2014, which was rebranded/renamed Ruby Acupuncture Clinic. She was the proud owner of Ruby, a Shetland sheepdog who was everyone's favorite office dog for many years. She passed away in 2021. 

Jim studied Chinese language, culture, and history for 20 years before graduating from Finger Lakes School of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine at Northeast College of Health Sciences (formerly New York Chiropractic College) with Ayla in 2020. Hailing from the Mid-Hudson Valley, James served in the U.S. Airforce for 11 years, with tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan. While enlisted, he became a certified CrossFit coach and after leaving the military, earned a bachelor’s degree in exercise science at Ithaca College. Jim sees patients at two locations: in Skaneateles, NY at SkanStrength (a gym and outdoor sports facility where he both practices acupuncture and Chinese medicine, coaches fitness classes and routinely teaches meditation, breath work, and qigong classes) and in Seneca Falls, NY at the Seneca Falls Health Center on the Northeast College campus).  He has been committed to qigong study and practice since 2016, training with various teachers in the U.S. and Canada. (Qigong is a daily movement and cultivation practice and one of the many facets of East Asian medicine.)

Jim is committed to meeting his patients where they are on the path from sickness to wellness to fitness. By combining modern training methods with traditional Nourishing Life practices Jim uses the tools of his profession to build and maintain health, strength, and power while utilizing the lenses of Chinese and East Asian medicine to identify, diagnose and treat patterns of disharmony and disease. Ayla's focus on bodywork led her to not study herbs while going to school for acupuncture, but meeting Jim and admiring his passion for herbal medicine gave her the idea to collaborate and offer this amazing modality at her practice. They both share the same attitudes and principles towards acupuncture practice and dedication to their patients.