Osteopaths specialise in the human body’s musculoskeletal structure and the relationship of this with all of the other functions of movement and can help with a wide range of physical problems.
Osteopaths provide a range of therapies specific to the service user including:
- Manual Therapy
- Physical Therapy (Rehabilitation and Prescribed Exercise)
- Health Advice
- Self-Management Guidance
Working life
Working as an Osteopath will mean that you’ll take part in a variety of different tasks during your working day. These can include:
- Creating a safe environment for each service user.
- Provide general advice about things that can affect service users’ daily lives
- Provide manual therapy to help relieve a service users pain and stiffness and to encourage better movement of the body.
- Refer service users to other healthcare professionals where appropriate.
Osteopaths work in a variety of settings including:
- Primary Care
- Acute hospitals
- Community settings
- Private Practice
Osteopaths usually work with service users on a one-to-one basis in settings where they can spend longer with a client to gain a thorough understanding of what issue is being experienced.
Osteopaths work alongside other Allied Health Professionals, medical staff and healthcare staff to support the wellbeing of a service user and help them overcome the barriers they are experiencing.
Requirements
Becoming an Osteopath requires an undergraduate degree or a Masters degree.
Courses typically last three to five years and are a combination of academic, research and over 1,000 hours of patient-facing clinical training. This intensive medical training will equip you with an in-depth knowledge of anatomy, physiology, psychology and pathology combined with clinical examination techniques.
Following your training, you will be required to register with the General Osteopathic Council before you are able to practice in the UK.
Entry requirements for an undergraduate course are usually:
- Two or three A levels, including a biological science
- Five GCSEs (grades A-C), including English language, maths and at least one science
Or equivalent qualifications:
- A BTEC, HND or HNC, including biological science
- A relevant T-level
- A relevant NVQ
- A science-based access course
- Equivalent Scottish or Irish qualifications
Each university sets its own entry requirements, so it’s important to check with them directly which qualifications they will accept for entry. In most cases, the results of an interview and other selection processes are considered as well as academic qualifications. It’s also a good idea to spend some time with a registered Osteopath to get some firsthand experience of what the role’s really like before you apply.
Working as an Osteopath will provide further opportunities to develop your career through apprenticeships and internal training in the future.
Degree apprenticeship route
There are currently no degree apprenticeship routes to Osteopathy.
Personal characteristics
To work successfully as an Osteopath, you need to consider your own personal characteristics. You would need to have the following attributes or similar:
- Be resilient and open to new ways of working
- Be supportive of service users who have experienced trauma or difficulties
- Have a non-judgemental and supportive attitude
- Be able to work with a variety of different people from differing backgrounds and experiences
- Be creative and resourceful
- Be able to work as part of a team but also be able to use your own initiative
- Be reassuring and supportive when dealing with service users or their families
Skills required
To work successfully as an Osteopath, you need to consider the skills that you have. You would need to demonstrate the following:
- Be well organised and able to plan your time
- Be able to communicate with a variety of people using different methods
- Be able to put service users at ease quickly
- Be patient
- Be enthusiastic
- Be able to explain complex treatment plans and advice in a way that is understood
Training and development opportunities
Once qualified and registered as an Allied Health Professional Osteopath, you can continue to develop your career over time. You may choose to set up your own private practice or work within the NHS.
With further training, you could become an Advanced Clinical Practitioner specialising in sports injury, elderly care or paediatrics. Other opportunities for progression also exist in teaching and learning, professional development and research.
Pay and benefits
As a qualified and registered Osteopath, you are most likely to be self-employed however more roles with the NHS are being introduced, particularly working with multidisciplinary musculoskeletal units.
Osteopaths in the NHS usually work 37.5 hours a week and you may be required to work flexibly over 7 days, you could be required to work shifts, evenings and weekends as part of your rota depending on the service users you are working with.
Osteopaths are paid using the Agenda for Change (AfC) system and will typically start their career on AfC band 5 but with experience, further training and additional qualifications, can progress further up the pay scale.
Osteopaths working for Social Care settings will be paid according to the employer they work for and the remuneration for the role should always be shown on their job advert. Other benefits of working as an Osteopath include access to a pension scheme, health service discounts such as a Blue Light Card and 27 days of annual leave in addition to bank holidays.