why osteopathic medicine essay examples

why osteopathic medicine essay examples

Exploring the Principles and Practices of Osteopathic Medicine: A Comprehensive Analysis

1. Introduction to Osteopathic Medicine

The human body possesses self-healing and self-regulatory abilities, two qualities that are foundational to osteopathic medicine. In health, these abilities manifest in the orderly functioning of the body’s systems, including both its structural (e.g., musculoskeletal, circulatory) and physiologic (e.g., immune, endocrine) components. Illness arises when the body’s structural and physiologic systems are disrupted and these self-healing and self-regulatory mechanisms are impeded. When allowed to function properly, these abilities can maintain good health and restore the body to a state of equilibrium following illness, injury, or even minor tissue distortion. These general principles represent the essence of revered 19th-century scientist and freethinker Andrew Taylor Still, D.O. (1828–1917) and they continue to underlie modern day osteopathic physicians.

The aim of this section is to provide an overview of osteopathic medicine for readers who may not be familiar with the scope of the field. We begin by tracing the origins of osteopathic medicine and then proceed to explore the principles and practices that form the core of the field. We also explore the broader question of what differentiates osteopathic medicine from allopathic medicine (i.e., standard medical practice as taught in most medical schools). The latter, too, generally seeks to advance health and healing through the use of drugs, surgery, and other medical procedures. And to set the stage for the material that follows, we conclude this section by looking at osteopathic medicine’s position in today’s health care environment.

2. Historical Evolution and Key Figures in Osteopathic Medicine

The principles of osteopathic medicine are ingrained in the osteopathic profession and include osteopathic medicine’s foundation and tradition of treating the body as a whole, preventive and integrative approaches to patient care, advocating for patient involvement in their health status, and applying a unique approach to diagnosing the cause of the signs and symptoms of pain, diseases, disorders, or dysfunctions. The foundations of osteopathic medicine are so unique in character and influence that some people have expressed interest in learning more about these unique principles and practices and are becoming an increasingly larger segment of osteopathic medical schools and the student body. In fact, with graduates of osteopathic medicine serving within the healthcare profession in the military, the VA, and other facilities, the profession is increasingly recognized as a separate and unique system of medical care.

Osteopathic medicine was founded by Dr. Andrew Taylor Still during the mid-nineteenth century in the United States. Seeking to separate himself from traditional medicine, Dr. Still utilized his extensive knowledge of human anatomy and his experiences working with soldiers, abolitionists, and Native American tribes to establish a system of health which primarily focused on the concept of treating the body as a whole and recognized that the health of the body is strongly influenced by its musculoskeletal, connective, and respiratory systems. For more than a century, osteopathic practitioners were trained in osteopathic principles and practices which were fundamentally rooted in the neuro-musculo-skeletal system. However, during the past quarter century, the evolution of a more integrated and holistic approach to healthcare has encouraged osteopathic educators to include current and evolving concepts in health promotion and disease prevention, as well as an osteopathic perception of health, healing, and disease.

3. Principles and Philosophy of Osteopathic Medicine

Osteopathy has a link to vitalism, in which living organisms are different from nonliving ones, as they are the result of purposeful development and action of an organizing principle. Many osteopathic physicians (D.O.s) now would have no interest in vitalism, but some would. Over the past nearly 150 years, osteopathic medicine always referred to its original precepts and encouraging the body’s ability to heal and including the mind-body connection. Some examples of that are still taught today, for example, describing postural biodynamics and utilizing the sensitive human nervous system and intrinsic musculoskeletal and cardiovascular reflexes in physical diagnostic procedures as a means of identifying the malposition of parts and allowing the normal inherent biologic and biophysiologic properties and forces to maintain and restore normal function.

Osteopathic medicine began with A.T. Still, DO, in the late 1800s and early 1900s, notable for rejecting allopathy in favor of more natural healing. He was the first to describe the musculoskeletal system and outlined manipulation and preventive medicine. Still talked about the relationships between blood supply, nerve function, nervous action, and thoughts. By changing the bony and muscular systems, he recognized there was no form of disease but a change in normal function and the body was self-healing. There were some concepts Still got wrong, but he never intended what D.O.s do to be fully mapped onto simple mechanical models.

4. Key Differences Between Osteopathic and Allopathic Medicine

Although direct comparisons and contrasts are included in the presentation of the core principles and practices and the inherent recommendations that follow, in this section we lay out the key differences in osteopathic and allopathic medicine. These key differences differentiate the osteopathic MD from the allopathic MD and should be emphasized by the DO and depicted in his or her academic record and presentation during the residency matching process. Currently, some are health care principles espoused by the American Academy of Family Practice (AAFP). The MD will need to demonstrate, at a minimum, to be considered for selection into osteopathic primary care residencies that he/she is equivalent to the osteopathic physician in this understanding. Optimally, the allopathic physician should have a current basic knowledge and some competence in OMM. Carefully select the osteopathic residency programs that offer such exchanges and desire allopathic MD applicants who can facilitate these types of exchanges. Consider interning with an osteopathic institution to facilitate and allow time for such exchanges through didactic and clinical experiences from the onset of training, not just in the last 6 months while completing fourth-year elective rotations before residency matching.

The training of osteopathic physicians differs in philosophy, emphasis, and content from the training of allopathic physicians in primary care fields beyond the use of OMM in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. In contrast to its use by some allopathic providers for palliation or simple musculoskeletal diagnoses, OMM is a unique and diverse system for the diagnosis and treatment of disease that engages the patient and physician in innovative preventive approaches and treatment plans that support the inherent restorative and regenerative capabilities of the patient. Consequently, the practice of the osteopathic primary care physician is truly comprehensive. This is why and how osteopathic medicine is distinctive and different and signifies the level of expertise and the unique capability in treating patients from a holistic approach.

5. Case Studies and Examples of Osteopathic Medicine in Practice

The traditional osteopathic medical core principles and practices evolutionary approach through the years from Kirksville was, and continues to advocate an intolerance for poor physician role models and hostile educational environments in the colleges of osteopathic medicine and teaching hospitals where students and residents were mistreated, humiliated, harassed, or abused in any manner, to prevent unintentional errors or criminal negligence, and to promote patient safety and high-quality professional standards of conduct. These standards of care are specific to the osteopathic profession, and may be included in the duty to adhere to the individual standard of care prescribed by the professional association.

Some examples of osteopathic patient care have been provided throughout the chapter to explore the principles and practices of osteopathic medicine. In this section, the goal is to provide a framework and perspective that explains the motivation and rationale osteopathic physicians (DOs) use to provide care to patients using osteopathic distinct considerations, and an appreciation for how these considerations inform and shape OMT integrated into osteopathic care. The long-standing history and tradition in the osteopathic standards of practice are to inspire empathy, understanding, and respect for the whole individual: having a body, a mind, and a spirit, as well as for the body, mind, and spirit of others and extending caring and positive regard for individuals or groups who are different in terms of race, religion, gender, background, abilities, or socio-economic status in part by combating health care disparities and social determinants of health.