Even DOs who don't regularly utilize OMM and OMT with their patients still practice
with a whole-person care approach – it is an integral aspect of the education taught
at any college of osteopathic medicine. Dr. Noto-Bell reminds us that the principles of osteopathic medicine recognize that
the body is a functional unit, and that if any sort of disruption occurs in one aspect
of a person's life – whether internal to them or external from their environment –
it will have an impact on the rest of their health and wellbeing.
Osteopathic physicians believe that structure and function are interrelated, so if
there is a problem with the structure of the body, the patient will have altered function
because of that disrupted structure. To illustrate this idea, Dr. Noto-Bell explains
how a DO might treat a patient with a fractured hip.
“A fractured hip will not be fixed with OMT, because that TART is not somatic dysfunction
– that requires surgery. But the osteopathic surgeon will still practice with the
whole person in mind, and will recognize that this patient will not be able to walk
properly unless the surgeon accounts for proper anatomic alignment and functional
impact after the surgery, and they may also address patient concerns about rehabilitation
and recovery time,” she says.
Another tenet of osteopathic medicine recognizes that the body has an inherent capability
for self-regulating, self-correcting and self-maintaining, and it is this homeostasis
that our bodies are trying to achieve all day long. “If something goes awry in that
innate ability to correct itself, then a DO may intervene with medication, surgery,
physical therapy, psychological therapy or possibly OMT.”