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  • Standardised data collection in osteopathy

Standardised data collection in osteopathy

The general public, NHS and government have been documented as showing increasing interest in the provision of complementary and alternative medicine. Clinical recommendations focussing on the management of spinal pain have examined both allopathic and non-allopathic approaches; the latter includes osteopathy. Although the evidence base for osteopathy and the use of manual therapies in the management of low back pain continues to grow, there is still debate over their benefits.

Access to osteopathic treatment is through a variety of locations: private practices, NHS hospital outpatient departments, GP’s Practices and clinics attached to osteopathic education institutions. The vast majority of patients access treatment through private practices.

Limited survey work has been undertaken to describe daily osteopathic practice; where it exists, this has shown that back pain represents approximately 50% of presentations in clinical practice. Existing data is based on a variety of settings and methodologies including retrospective data collection, data gathered from single practices, data from clinics in osteopathic educational institutions, or single snapshot surveys of one day in practice. Such data must be treated with caution and a more systematic and all-encompassing means of collecting practice-based data was proposed.

This was a national project involving members of National Council for Osteopathic Research and eight regional hubs in the development and piloting of a standardised collection tool for use in osteopathy practice.
Complementary and alternative medicine is currently used by some 13% of the population in the United Kingdom.

Project objective

The overall aim of this project was to develop and pilot a standardised data collection tool (SDC) for the collection of patient-based data within osteopathic private practice in the UK. The primary aim of the project was to generate good-quality information of high relevance to the stakeholders of the osteopathic profession in the UK.

The project’s second aim was research and development; the active involvement of practitioners in practice-based data collection has been effective as a means of building research capacity within other professions.

The process and methodology of developing and implementing standardised data collection offered the opportunity to involve practitioners in the process of developing new knowledge concerning the practice of osteopathy, whilst being rooted in participatory research.

The data emanating from standardised data collection can be used nationally to characterise practice, set standards for audit activities and provide information relevant to all stakeholders in NCOR as well as the profession at large, which may be used as a basis for further valid audit activities and to develop meaningful research questions. Developing meaningful research questions is particularly important to the osteopathic profession.

Project impact

The tool has now been fully piloted and a three month period of data collection has taken place across the UK. The report has been written and publications will follow. The study produced baseline data on osteopathic clinical practice in the UK, including the characteristics of patients, types of presentation, management, treatments, and referral. Download the final project report.

The findings have been used by GOsC to inform policy development and research strategy, for the development of revalidation and practice standards generally, and for minimising risk to patients. The SDC work has been developed further to produce a short form version. This short form version has been tested nationally and is available on the NCOR website.

Research team

Professor Ann Moore

C Fawkes

J Leach

Outputs

The final project report

Executive summary

Short form version

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