This text is part of the special Acfas Congress notebook
Osteopathy may face criticism regarding its credibility and its scientific approach, but one in four adults have already used it in Quebec and the practice is growing in popularity. After major advances in obtaining a professional order, osteopathy will soon become a discipline taught at university. Friday May 17, during 91e Acfas Congress, a conference will look at the role that osteopathy can play in the university system and on educational strategies for teaching the discipline.
In spring 2022, the Office des professions du Québec submitted a favorable opinion regarding the creation of a professional order that would regulate the practice of osteopathy. A major step forward in gaining recognition and legitimacy for the practice, according to François Lalonde, associate professor at UQAM, co-responsible for the conference and project manager for the development of osteopathy programs. “The Office des professions du Québec recommended the establishment of a university training program in osteopathy,” he recalls.
Universities are starting to work on programs that can be offered to future osteopaths and those already practicing their profession. Because, currently, this is where the problem lies: the training is unequal. There are, of course, private schools which teach this practice, and at least seven different associations of osteopaths in the province, but there is no real supervision. With the creation of a professional order, or the integration of the profession into an already existing order, university training becomes essential. ” It’s the game changer, to have an order soon, so that the universities are a little more interested in it,” he says. Several countries already teach the discipline at university, adds the professor. This is the case of Switzerland, Australia, Great Britain and even the United States, he indicates.
Two firmwares in fall 2024
“At UQAM, what we have done for the moment is to decide to offer two microprograms for osteopaths already in practice, which will begin in September 2024,” indicates Mr. Lalonde. This will make it possible to qualify already trained osteopaths. UQAM will thus become the first Quebec university to offer training in osteopathy. In Ontario, Sheridan College has been offering a four-year bachelor’s degree since fall 2023.
The professional development microprogram will allow osteopaths to become aware of the latest practices of the profession, by updating their knowledge and deepening it, to allow practices adapted to the conditions of patients. The courses will therefore focus on osteopathic models, therapeutic exercises, sports osteopathy, aging and pain mechanisms. The clinical safety microprogram offers courses on complex clinical cases and pathophysiologies. It will deal with functional assessment, helping relationships and vulnerability factors in intervention. The goal is to develop skills to work in an interdisciplinary clinical environment.
In parallel with these microprograms, François Lalonde helps develop grade programs, because the objective is to have complete training, of approximately 3,100 hours, corresponding to the training that already exists in physiotherapy or occupational therapy, underlines the osteopath . “The idea is to have a baccalaureate-master’s continuum,” he says. By standardizing knowledge and practices, this will allow for fewer disparities between the different osteopaths in the province. The training is based on evidence, says Mr. Lalonde, which also helps to better protect the public. UQAM is not the only one working on this project, the University of Sherbrooke is also tackling the task.
Open doors
The programs that will be developed must in particular make it possible to remedy the shortcomings that still exist in certain practices of the discipline. They must also be interdisciplinary, to advocate a global vision of health. The discipline will also be able to take advantage of the university environment to deepen research. “From a scientific point of view, it is a little less well understood and less studied until now,” says François Lalonde. However, there are some master’s and doctoral projects that focus on practice. “But here, with training, we will be able to target and frame, and possibly make requests for research funds with a little more scope,” he hopes.
Currently, osteopathic practice is mainly done in private practices, at home in individuals or in multidisciplinary clinics. University training could therefore also make it possible to see different forms of practices emerge, according to the professor. “We are aiming for more traditional health care, for the elderly, in hospitals, in sports centers, etc. “, he explains.
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