An Osteopath, not a Doctor

There are some occasions when I am either mistakenly called 'Dr Jones' or, on other occasions, that some mistakenly think that as I do not call myself 'doctor', perhaps my qualification is somewhat lacking. This could not be further from the truth.

Osteopaths in Britain have never used the title 'doctor' and we are one of the few professions left that refuse to do so. Do not be under the misunderstanding that there is any equivalent to the British osteopathic qualification anywhere in North America, as there is not. Along with Australian osteopaths (whom also do not call themselves 'doctor'), we are quite unique with our depth of training.

Canadian healthcare operates in a very different manner to that which we have in Britain. Within Canada, there are 'doctors' of chiropractic, naturopathy, optometry and traditional Chinese medicine, but in Britain we tend to reserve the title 'doctor' for physicians and Doctors of Philosophy (PhD). If you were trying to draw a comparison between Canadian and British healthcare, you might invent a term such as "doctor of manipulative osteopathy". (Remember that such a term does not exist in reality)

Clause 126 of the Code of Practice for osteopaths in the UK states the following:

"Unless you are a registered medical practitioner, you must not use any title that implies you are a medical practitioner (this does not prevent you from using the title 'doctor' if you have a PhD and it is clear that the title relates to this)."

Interestingly, chiropractors in Britain use the honourary title 'doctor', but they are required to ensure that it is well known that they are chiropractors, rather than physicians.

This difference between the osteopathic and chiropractic professions in regards to using the title 'doctor' in Britain still causes a split in some areas of the osteopathic profession. There are those who say that osteopaths should use the title 'doctor' and there are those that say that we should not.

Those against the title of 'doctor' believe that, as osteopaths, we should not prey upon the unsuspecting public whom may confuse osteopaths and physicians and therefore make a misunderstanding.

Those whom think we should use the title 'doctor' believe so because a chiropractor can take advantage of the 'status' that the title has in society. The prime example from one osteopath went as follows:

"A patient came to see me complaining of pain relating to the spine. He had previously had a number of chiropractic sessions, but unfortunately he was no better. After three osteopathic sessions, the patient had made a tremendous recovery. On leaving the clinic one day, I asked why he had decided to try chiropractic first. His response? 'Well, he was a 'doctor' and you were not. I thought he would know more than you!'"

The osteopath then asked the question in one of our professional journals, "how is it that the chiropractic profession, with a similar level of training to osteopaths, can gain this advantage of the public? All I want is a level playing field."

For me, I am undecided either way - I will just let those at the top of my profession and within government make the decision, just as long as the public is informed accordingly.

Within Canada, it is likely to remain that osteopaths will be the only primary healthcare professionals never to use the title 'doctor'.

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Copyright © Marc Jones - Osteopath (UK), Osteopathy Vancouver 2003 onwards