As an osteopathic manual practitioner, your job is to support the body’s ability to self-heal and self-regulate. Osteopathic manual practitioners don’t see themselves as healers but rather facilitators of health. Instead of imposing treatments on the body, you’ll work with the body to return it to its normal state of function and health. That means a fundamental understanding of the body, its systems, and structures are essential to offering the right support to your clients.
At CAO, anatomy and physiology are built into the curriculum at every stage of learning. Students gain an in-depth understanding of the body, so they are able to treat its layers on an individual level. Here’s a closer look at the importance of studying anatomy and how CAO supports your knowledge.
Understand Different Physical Challenges as an Osteopathy Professional
In your osteopathy career, you’ll be working with clients experiencing a number of different physical difficulties. Some people may come to you with a sports-related injury or long-term pain. Other clients may be experiencing digestive issues, postural problems, sleep problems, stress and more. In each case, your understanding of anatomy–the joints, muscles, and systems of the body–will guide you in diagnosing and treating different physical problems.
To ensure that every student is up to speed with their anatomy and physiology knowledge, CAO offers a Year 1 Prep course to help you learn and review this essential content. This is a great option for those with limited experience in healthcare. You can be sure you have the fundamentals down as you prepare to become an osteopathic manual practitioner.
Work with the Interrelated Systems of the Body
As a non-invasive manual therapy, osteopathy aims to improve health across the body by manipulating and strengthening the musculoskeletal framework. Instead of just targeting the area where a client feels pain, an osteopathic practitioner will try to locate the root cause of the problem and work to restore balance in all the body’s systems. This approach requires you to understand how physical problems in one area can impact another and how the different joints, muscles, and bones in the body support one another.
Our curriculum is designed to comprehensively cover clinical anatomy and physiology. Our focus on anatomy moves away from the traditional allopathic model and toward a fully integrated osteopathic model that examines the body as a whole dynamic body of function. This is key to not just treating pain in the short-term but providing overall good health and wellbeing.
Treat the Body on a Personalized Level
A good osteopathy professional understands that every client’s body and physical experience of it are different. The approach you take with each patient will be based on the individual, their health history, and the symptoms they describe. Having an in-depth understanding of anatomy –including its variations–will help you to treat the layers of bodily structure on a personalized, individual level to better support each patient.
You’ll have the chance to apply your knowledge of anatomy and physiology to real-life patients in our free public clinic. Here, you’ll learn how to catch red flags, signs or symptoms of the body and hone in on evaluating physical problems. With the right theory and practice, you’ll be ready to embark on a specialized career in the healthcare field.
Are you looking to train as an osteopathic manual practitioner?
Start your career with the program at the Canadian Academy of Osteopathy today.