Making OMT Great Again

What happened to OMT (osteopathic manipulative treatment)?

Over the past few decades, OMT, which used to distinguish osteopathic physicians from MDs, is being used less and less by osteopathic doctors, and it is estimated that 10% or less of osteopathic medical students are planning to use OMT in their future practices. I proposed some theories about why this is happening in an article I wrote for the DO magazine in December 2017.It probably has to do with the confusing nomenclature used to describe osteopathic lesions, and many of the techniques that students are learning today certainly take longer than the 15 minutes allotted to them by most medical practices to see a patient.

One of the most influential mentors I had in my career was Dr. Stanley Schiowitz. He is best known for his pioneering FPR (facilitated positional release) techniques. He always told me that OMT needed to grow and change with the times, and that A.T. Still, the father of osteopathic medicine, didn’t get or learn OMT from a book… he innovated it all! So we, as osteopathic physicians, should strive to innovate more efficient, more effective, and even safer techniques to help our patients.