ORION

Bridging the gap between research and osteopathy practitioners

The ORION study was undertaken by the Australian Research Centre in Complementary and Integrative Medicine (ARCCIM) at the Faculty of Health, University of Technology, Sydney and was led by Professor Jon Adams. It aimed to shed light on the day-to-day practice of osteopathy in Australia, including the techniques used, the patient populations treated and the outcomes achieved. The extensive research provided valuable insight for osteopaths and other health professionals, and provided a greater understanding of the osteopathic profession as a whole. The project also aimed to spark further sub-studies to greater explore osteopathic education, practice, and the future of the profession.

ORION provided the opportunity to not just establish the infrastructure and evidence base for osteopathy research in the short term, but also to help grow a sustainable research culture and broad evidence platform for osteopathy into the future. Key to this was developing a close working relationship with Universities offering osteopathy courses and academics working in osteopathy education and research. The project commenced in mid-2015 and took 12 months of development. It also had its own steering committee with a mix of researchers, osteopaths, and Osteopathy Australia representatives; and gained ethics approval from the Human Ethics Committee, University of Technology Sydney.

The ORION project remains a milestone in osteopathic research. Osteopathy Australia can only make headway on many lobbying issues with better data and as such, projects such as ORION help protect, promote, and enhance the profession.

Learn more: ARCCIM & ORION, Read the ORION study
For more information about the study, including any data queries, please contact Contact Professor Jon Adams