The use of exercise prescription in Australian osteopathy practice:
secondary analysis of a nationally representative sample of the
profession
Abstract
Introduction: Exercise is beneficial for improving general health,
wellbeing and specific medical conditions. In musculoskeletal conditions
such as chronic low back and neck pain, prescribed exercise has been
found to be moderately effective in decreasing pain and improving
function. Osteopaths are primary contact health professionals who manage
predominantly musculoskeletal complaints. This work presents a secondary
data analysis of the Australian osteopathy practice-based research
network and profiles the characteristics of osteopaths who often use
exercise prescription in patient care. Methodology: Secondary analysis
of a cross-sectional survey of 992 osteopaths registered with the
Osteopathy Research and Innovation Network, an Australian practice-based
research network. Demographic, practice and treatment characteristics of
Australian osteopaths who ‘often’ use exercise prescription in patient
care were examined. Results: Seven-hundred and thirty-three Australian
osteopaths (74%) indicated they use exercise prescription ‘often’ in
patient care. Australian osteopaths who often use exercise prescription
are more likely to be co-located with another osteopath (ORa 1.54), and
send referrals to an exercise physiologist; (ORa 1.94). Those osteopaths
who often use exercise prescription were also more likely to discuss
physical activity (ORa 5.61), and nutrition (ORa 1.90). Australian
osteopaths who use exercise prescription often were more likely to treat
patients with sports injuries (ORa 2.43), and use soft tissue techniques
(ORa 1.92), trigger point techniques (ORa 2.72) and sports taping (ORa
1.78). Conclusion: Osteopaths who utilise exercise prescription were
more likely to discuss physical activity, diet and nutrition, and
utilise referral networks with specialist medical practitioners and
exercise physiologists. Australian osteopaths who often use exercise
prescription were also more likely to treat sport injury patients. The
results support the conclusion that Australian osteopaths use exercise
prescription and have referral networks with other health professionals
for patient management. Further work is required to explore the type of
exercise prescription used and for what conditions.