Physiotherapy and Osteopathy: Healing Hands, Different Paths

When you’re experiencing pain, have sustained an injury, or are managing a health condition, you may seek out help from health professionals, but it can be confusing to know where to start. There are so many different practitioners out there, which is wonderful and it can also be overwhelming.

It can be hard to know who to go to see for help and what different disciplines have to offer. Is it best to see a Physiotherapist? An Osteopathic Manual Practitioner? A Massage Therapist? A chiropractor? A combination of people? Who will help you get the best results?

The answer isn’t always cut & dry, but what can help you decide is understanding a little more about each discipline and what they do. 

























At our clinic, we’re often asked “What’s the difference between Osteopathy and Physiotherapy?”

And it’s a great question! From the outside, they can appear very similar, and talk to friends and family about the same issue and you’ll likely get a mixed bag of responses for who you should see.

So let’s talk about it.

What is the difference? What’s similar about them? How can each help?  And most importantly, who should you see?

Let’s start by talking about Physiotherapy.

Physiotherapy is a health care profession focused on preventing and managing pain, physical impairments, disabilities and health conditions that may limit participation in work, sport or daily activities and affect your quality of life.

Physiotherapists look at the whole body, how it’s moving, and how different parts are relating to one another. The focus is not just on range of motion and strength, but also the quality of movement and any pain associated with it.

When someone comes in to see a Physiotherapist for  knee pain, for example, they don’t just look at the knee joint.  Assessment and treatment may also address the lower back, hip and/or the ankle to reduce pain and restore mobility and function.

Physiotherapy also aims to improve function when it has been impacted after an injury, stroke or brain injury, when managing a neurological diagnosis, surgery or other health diagnosis that is limiting function. 

Restoring movement and function, managing pain, and helping people get back to their day to day is the goal!

Physiotherapists use a number of different modalities to assist with these goals.

Treatment can include education, exercise,hands on (manual) therapy, acupuncture, ultrasound, TENS, EMS, laser (to name a few) and may combine modalities to help you reach your goals.  

Which modalities used in treatment will depend on the training of the Physiotherapist as well as what is appropriate given your concerns, symptoms, goals and other health factors (pregnancy, joint replacements, pre-existing conditions)
Physiotherapists work in a wide variety of settings including private clinics, hospitals, and rehabilitation facilities and there are different areas of specialty within physiotherapy. Paediatrics, Neurorehabilitation, Vestibular, Orthopaedics, Pelvic Health, Geriatrics just to name a few.  

So while Physiotherapy in general can help with a wide variety of issues (sprains and strains, joint pain, back pain, pre and post joint replacement to name a few)  there are instances where seeing a Physiotherapist with a specific type of training will best help you in your recovery.

The practice of Osteopathy is based on four core tenets: 

• The body is a dynamic unit of function 
• Structure & function are interrelated 
• The body self heals & self regulates 
• Rational treatment is based on the above principles 

Based on these principles, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners (OMPs)  use hands-on adjustments to address restrictions in the body, helping to create an environment where the body's systems can work together in the way they were intended, leading to health and ideal function.

The intention of osteopathic treatment is to address the underlying causes of symptoms, not just address the symptoms themselves.

This means that osteopathic treatment goes beyond the area of concern. If you come in with shoulder pain, treatment may focus on the neck, the hips or even the ankles to address what is creating and contributing to the issue at the shoulder.

Regardless of your concern, OMPs consider the impact and connection to all systems in the body.

Imagine a garden hose with a kink in it. As the water flow to the garden is impeded, parts of the garden will start to suffer. Once the kink or blockage is removed and the water flow returns, the garden will flourish.




With this philosophy at its core, osteopathy can help people of all ages (from babies to the oldest adults!)  address a wide variety of concerns from sprains and strains, to joint aches and pains, digestive and menstrual issues, swelling and edema,  headaches, jaw pain and more.

Physiotherapists and Osteopathic Manual Practitioners both have in-depth knowledge of human anatomy and physiology, which they apply to help with your concerns.

Our Physiotherapists and Osteopathic Manual Practitioners take an individualized, whole person approach to treatment.  Both disciplines search for the underlying cause of pain, symptoms, and restriction and aim to address the root cause as well as what could be contributing to it.

Both disciplines ask the question WHY.  Our clinicians are like detectives, unravelling a puzzle and putting all the pieces together. Why is this happening, and then what needs to be done to address it?

People often access healthcare services in response to uncomfortable symptoms. They’re looking for a solution to a problem, which is important! AND what’s often overlooked is what can be done to prevent  problems in the first place.  Physiotherapy and Osteopathy can both be part of preventive care - keeping things running smoothly before they break down.


For example: 

Our Physiotherapists can assess your movement patterns and identify areas of compensation, restriction and weakness that could lead to injuries or issues down the road.

Based on that assessment they’ll develop an exercise program (and/or include other modalities!)  to address those areas, helping to keep you moving well and doing what you love! 

Regular check-ins with our Osteopathic Manual Practitioners can help keep you on the up and up by addressing areas of compensation or limitation that aren’t yet causing issues, but could in the future if they stick around for long enough.

In this way, both practices can help you build vitality and resilience, which helps you feel better in the moment and makes the comeback easier when life does throw things your way.

Physiotherapy and Osteopathy both use manual therapy, and they even use some of the same techniques.

Both disciplines aim to help you feel better to keep you moving and engaged in your life!

So at this point you may be asking yourself, with all this is common, what makes Physiotherapy and Osteopathy different?

Osteopathy and Physiotherapy may share goals and manual therapy techniques, but they are still different.

Physiotherapists and Osteopathic Manual Practitioners come at things from different lenses, bringing unique points of view and insights to a problem. They may approach the same issue from different angles. This is even seen between clinicians of the same discipline!  

While Physiotherapy treatment can include manual therapy, Physiotherapists also have a number of different modalities in their tool belts, so  physiotherapy treatment may include multiple modalities to address your concerns.

Osteopathy (in Canada) uses manual therapy exclusively. 

Physiotherapy generally includes an active element to treatment. That might be strengthening exercises, stretches, or other movements to help reinforce and develop new patterns that will help your body feel its best.

The truth is, there are many concerns that can be addressed by both Physiotherapy and Osteopathy.  

There are instances where the best path forward is receiving both types of treatment, and sometimes who you should be seeing depends where you are in your healing and recovery.

For example, manual therapy is not a great choice if someone’s pain is such that they can’t tolerate being touched, but may be a great help to them down the road. 

Osteopathy and Physiotherapy are both great options for helping with muscle and joint pain, strains and sprains, back pain, hip pain, shoulder pain, headaches, TMJ, in preparation for and after joint replacement surgery, and so much more.

In many cases, osteopathy and physiotherapy complement each other. Combining an active and passive approach can be a winning match.

You might see an OMP for manual therapy to address back pain and then work with a physiotherapist to build strength and create an exercise program to support you in returning to lifting weights at the gym.  

Both osteopathy and physiotherapy aim to improve your health and quality of life and the best approach will depend on your goals, condition, and how actively you want to participate in your recovery. 

Every person is unique, as is each injury and health concern. Trying to provide a definitive list of what type of clinician you should see for what concern would be impossible and could lead you down the wrong way. 

The best path forward for you will depend on a number of different factors that are unique to you. 

So where should you start?  We recommend a conversation. 

With some details about your concerns and your goals our team can help guide you to the best place to start. As mentioned earlier - your needs may change as you progress and heal, and so, the plan will be ever evolving and dynamic. Just like your health. 


If you have questions about who to see and where to start, call us to book a FREE 15 minute consultation with one of our clinicians.

If you’re ready to get started with one of our Osteopathic Manual Practitioners you can book here, and if you’d like to work with one of our Physiotherapists, you can book here. 

We’re here to help you Move Well, Live Well, Be Well!