Communication for osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT): the language of lived experience in OMT pedagogy

Questions about the scientific merits of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) and the search for consistent, effective teaching methods for OMT persist in the discourse of the osteopathic medical curriculum. Although grounded on scientific principles, the philosophy of osteopathic medicine in the words of Andrew Taylor Still, William G. Sutherland, and other prominent osteopathic medical scholars advances concepts in metaphoric language that may seem obscure and dated to many of today's students. Evidence in the literature of osteopathic medicine supports the congruence of phenomenology with the philosophy and methods used to teach OMT. Phenomenology offers an alternative paradigm to address questions of scientific merit and could provide a consistent language to a rigorous, scientific approach to communication for OMT pedagogy. The authors propose a solution for the tactical adaptation of a communication strategy based on an interpretation of osteopathic medical methodology and phenomenology.