APPOINTMENTS: 01628 620 897 
Osteopathy - what is it and would it be best for me?Osteopathy is an inherently safe therapy that is continually adapted to each patient during the course of each treatment.
The osteopath uses his or her hands to assess the state and mobility of your body’s bones, joints, muscles, ligaments, nerves and connective tissues (the musculo-skeletal system) and are stretched by gently moving and manipulating the joints.
Osteopathic techniques are designed to relieve local congestion and improving flexibility, thus assisting the body to restore itself to the best possible function as soon as possible.
Osteopaths are concerned with how well all the elements of the musculo-skeletal system work together and how well, or otherwise, the whole mechanism is adapted to the patient's environment.
They diagnose and treat problems that occur due to wear and tear, poor posture, injury, stress, or disease. Using their hands they examine and treat, or "tune", the musculo-skeletal system so that it and other systems such as the circulation and digestion can all function together at peak efficiency.
IF YOU HAVE ANY DOUBTS OR CONCERNS AS TO WHETHER OR NOT OSTEOPATHY MIGHT BE BEST FOR YOU - PLEASE CALL AND ASK TO SPEAK TO EITHER DAVID OR OLIVER.....
..or you can e-mail us with any question(s):
IF YOU STILL HAVE ANY DOUBTS, DO PLEASE ASK YOUR OWN DOCTOR.
Consultation and treatment - what you may expect from your osteopath:
Your first consultation at The Osteopathic Centre will last about 40-45 minutes. However, before we begin, we will ask you to read and sign our "Patient Information & Consent Form". This describes the examination process, states our confidentiality and disclosure policy and asks you to be responsible for consultation fees.
If you have any questions or doubts after reading our information sheet, do please ask either David Gilhooley or Oliver Cox for clarification BEFORE the consultation itself gets underway. You are completely at liberty to cancel the appointment without penalty at this stage.
During this first consultation, we take a detailed history of your problem and any previous episodes, how they were dealt with, and the results of any treatment. We also take details of your past medical history.
Rest assured that, as in your GP's practice, all your personal and clinical information is recorded and stored in the strictest confidence, in compliance with the Data Protection Act.
Examination and Treatment
For the physical examination you will usually be asked to undress down to your underclothes in private. So it is best to wear something comfortable and suitably modest.
We are happy for you to bring along a relative or friend as a chaperone, if this might help you relax. For a patient under the age of 16 (male or female), we will insist that a parent or other responsible adult is present during all consultations.
After discussing the results of the history and examination with you, we might find it useful or necessary to contact your doctor for further clinical information, or for investigations to be arranged, e.g. X-rays, a scan, or blood tests, before proceeding with osteopathic treatment. This would be done only with your full approval, and you may request a copy of any correspondence.
Follow-up treatment(s):
Sometimes it is necessary to assess the response to the first one or two treatments before we can give you a realistic idea as to how many visits might be needed. In most cases, as progress is made, the interval between treatments will be increased progressively.
At each follow-up visit, (20-30 minutes) you will be re-assessed and any changes in the treatment plan will be discussed with you.
Again, please note that a parent or other responsible adult must be present at EVERY examination and treatment session with ANY patient of 16 years of age or less.
We make every effort to see patients in acute pain as soon as possible.
Advice:
A detailed history and physical examination are essential before we can give specific advice on any clinical problem. Because of this, advice of only a general kind can be given over the phone or by e-mail. If your osteopath is with a patient when you call, we will arrange for him/her to call you back.
Keeping & cancelling appointments - what we expect of you as our patient:
Please do try to give us at least 24 hours' notice of any change in the agreed appointment time.
In the case of a late cancellation (less than 24 hours from the time arranged), unless your time slot is subsequently taken by another patient, we will charge you a £25 late cancellation fee.
If you do not cancel your appointment and do not turn up,
there will be a £35 - £40 FULL FEE missed appointment charge.
Outside normal practice hours, please leave a message on our 24-hour telephone answering service.
Time keeping:
Your osteopath will try to keep to the pre-arranged appointment schedule but, during the course of a morning or evening session, certain cases may require more time and so you may be asked to wait a little. If you have a tight schedule, please telephone to see if we are running on time.
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