Lymphatic pump techniques can be useful here, as they have been shown to positively affect the immune system. Historically, few attempts have been made to create a collection of clinically relevant guiding principles. In particular, stress is a well known cause or contributor to hypertension. He believed that all elements of a person’s body, mind and spirit had to be incorporated into the total care of that person. Its founder, Andrew Taylor Still, thought that correcting problems with the body's structure could help the body heal itself. The Neurologic Model The neurologic model deals with the effects of facilitated spinal cord segments and sustained symphaticotonia, resulting in viscerosomatic and somatovisceral reflex phenomena. The Osteopathic Philosophy. The body constantly attempts to resist, neutralize or overcome the various stresses to which it is exposed. Last accessed March 1, 2014. https://www.osteopathic.org/inside-aoa/about/aoa-annual-statistics/Pages/growth-in-osteopathic-physicians.aspx. Rogers, FJ, Advancing a traditional view of osteopathic medicine through clinical practice. Provide compassionate, quality care to my patients; Display integrity and professionalism throughout my career; Advance the philosophy, practice and science of Osteopathic Medicine; Support my profession with loyalty and action, word and deed; and. Still's patients were forbidde… What is different about the osteopathic physician is how he or she thinks about health and disease. Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine or DOs, believe there’s more to good health than the absence of pain or disease. The second major principle of osteopathic medicine is that the body has an inherent capacity to maintain its own health and to heal itself. Nashville Osteopathic and Integrative Medicine believes in creating a patient-centered environment and get back to cultivating a true, therapeutic doctor/patient relationship. He developed manipulative methods (now known as osteopathic manipulative treatment) to remove these structural abnormalities to alleviate the patient’s illness. Thus the body is viewed as an interrelated group of organ systems, each one dependent on the others, and each one compensating along with the others in order to meet the demands of the internal and external environments of the body. Chila, AG, Executive Ed. Thus treatment is based on the principles of body unity, self-regulatory and self-healing mechanisms, the somatic component of disease, the interrelationship between structure and function, and the appropriate use of manipulative treatment. Foundations of Osteopathic Medicine 3rd Ed. Its philosophy is based on the principles of the unity of the human body, the body’s ability to regulate and heal itself, the somatic component of disease, the interrelationship of structure and function, and the use of manipulative treatment in the total care of the patient. The Philosophy of Osteopathic Medicine - COM. Financial Conflicts of Interest in Research, Copyright | Privacy | Accessibility | Feedback, (C) 2020 Western University of Health Sciences. Foundations of Osteopathic Medicine, 3rd ed. This approach alone can often assist patients in recovering from illness. These principles acknowledge the importance of the musculoskeletal system and its role in health and disease. One day, when he was suffering from a headache, he got the idea to lower a rope swing to about 8 – 10 inches from the ground, threw a blanket over the rope and then laid down on the ground, using the rope swing as a pillow. These stressors may come from various sources and may include biological, behavioral, social, spiritual and environmental factors. The treatment goals for this model include optimizing the psychological and social components of the patient’s overall health. He understood that the body did not simply exist in a state of health or illness, but was engaged in an ongoing struggle with the demands of its external and internal environments. In addition to the private practice of medicine, Still also ran a farm and did mechanical work (he had received some formal schooling in mechanical engineering). Osteopathic physicians bring the additional benefits of osteopathic manipulative techniques to diagnose and treat patients. A specific organ or system may become the prime focus of illness, but the effects of that illness can be felt in some degree throughout the entire body. Osteopathic principles allow the physician to consider all aspects of the patient, not just the symptoms. These tenets are: From these tenets the osteopathic physician derives certain principles for patient care. He dedicated himself to the study of the human body, and spent much of his time reviewing the elements of anatomy, physiology and chemistry. How does the osteopathic physician apply OPP in the care of patients? However, should stressors accumulate to the point where these mechanisms are overwhelmed, the body’s inherent tendency toward health is weakened. Still decided that the human body could work the same way. Remember that we define osteopathic medicine as a complete system of medical care with a philosophy that combines the needs of the patient with the current practice of medicine, surgery, and obstetrics; that emphasizes the interrelationship between structure and function; and that has an appreciation of the body’s ability to heal itself. What an osteopathic physician does for a patient (aside from the use of osteopathic manipulative treatment) is often not different from what any physician might do when faced with a similar situation.