Medway Osteopathic Clinic

10/09/2026

There is an old saying in finance and economics: "bad money drives out good".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gresham%27s_law
This can be applied to healthcare by looking at the dilution of care provided when the low hanging fruits of various systems are adopted by others not fully trained in such modalities. The experience of patients when modest skills are applied to complex cases is enough to turn patients off from trying something further because "they tried that and it was rubbish!".
How can a dry needling course taken of one weekend be compared to a Traditional Chinese qualification in acupuncture that takes 10 years?
When I first started my osteopathic training my brother asked why. He said he'd been to osteopaths for years and they were rubbish. I said in three months wasn't rubbish and he asked me to treat him. I said I'd only done three months and so knew nothing but I was persuaded to look at his back. It was much too complex for me (he was an international olympic weightlifter with a history of pain) but the pelvis was obvious. Nobody had spoken to him about his pelvic torsion in 9 years of treatments. I sent him to a classical osteopath and he broke his own records in weeks.
I don't needle, I don't massage and I'm not a councellor.
I treat bodies not just backs.

In economics, Gresham's law is a monetary principle stating that "bad money drives out good". For example, if there are two coins in circulation containing metal of different value, which are accepted by law as having similar face value, the more valuable coin based on the inherent value of its comp...

09/09/2026

Just had the second patient in two days cancel their appointment saying they have been told they need an Xray before they can see me.
For both our sakes.
No point in wasting everyone's time when an Xray will tell us what the problem is.
Xrays are two dimensional images of your four dimensional being.
Not only does it not capture the three dimensions of structure it cannot show the fourth effect of function, time and movement.
Great at spotting cancer, fracture and abscess but not a lot of use generally in my field.
Talking of "my field", osteopathy is not about bones, bones are just part of bodies. Osteopaths treat bodies.

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09/09/2026

The NHS is swamped with patients, A and E services overwhelmed. Explanation for why abound and vary from too many people with problems, too few staff, poor organisation, too few hospitals ... a little like the crisis in the prisons.
Unlike the prison saga it is clear that the increase in the average age of the population increases the needs of that group.
I have treated people who's ages have ranged from a few minutes old to 102 years of age but there is no doubt the average has got a lot older.
I hardly see children these days but a large proportion of my patients are in their 80's.
Perhaps it's because I've been doing the job for over 40 years but a lot of these are new patients to me.
It would be nice to think the general state of health of the whole population is increasing and that private care is only sought after by wealthy older people who want to free up appointments in the NHS for others but this is not the impression I get.
Going to the GP's - even if you can in the first place, even if they are the right place as knowledgeable gatekeepers to other services seems to mean redirection to A and E to wait for hours, or to physios to wait for referrals and weeks or months further waiting before being seen.
Is this management by conspiracy or incompetence like the old adage or is it that private care is no longer a business model that can survive if aimed at getting patients better as soon as possible?

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29/08/2026

People are horribly complex. This goes for both body and mind if you think you can separate the two :)
Fortunately they are also self organising and self regulating, albeit needing a bit of a nudge in the right direction occasionally.
We call this nudge "healthcare": medical, surgical, osteopathic, dietetic, psychological - whatever helps, whatever seems to be needed.
They all only work because the body fixes itself.
We just lend a hand

27/08/2026

Rupert's recovery is proceeding apace.
He will be seeing more people and will be able to take back care of his long term patients.
This means I will have a couple of spare appointment spaces a day available soon.
Get in now and avoid the rush :D

27/08/2026

It's a truism of neurophysiology that input does not determine output.

Same in osteopathy.

Treatment is not putting bits in better places, things don't go out.
"Slipped disc, Sir?" hardly. The spine is a continuous column with discs between the bones. Have a bit pop out and the column is broken.
All input, every sensation is addressed by the pre-existing state of the body. Treatment exists to provoke a response.
Science informs healthcare but its ex*****on is an art form, modified by how the body / patient responds.
The bones are our levers, ways of moving the body, not LEGO, not a set of blocks needing to be popped back :D

25/08/2026

Interesting data from Facebook (you know they are watching 😎) : 60% of patients who check out this site are females between 45 and 60. I see more both younger and older in clinic. Could they be lying about their ages? 🤔😉😁

18/08/2026

I was told off by a patient yesterday.
She complained I'd not told her to come back regularly for treatment that would help her stay healthy, avoiding the build up of minor problems that accrue from just living.
These do tend to build up as we age.
Healthy children are so elastic, unhealthy elders more plastic :D

If you are not coming in at least once a year you probably are not taking enough care of yourself.

Don't forget 01634 814700 to book

28/07/2026

This is the quietest time of the year for the clinic.
The school summer holidays mean millions of people go abroad from Gatwick airport alone.
Don't worry about having a problem getting an appointment.
I'm free :D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlCr_D3pZ68

08/07/2026

What do you want from a practitioner?
Probably what you want from people in any field: competency and the desire to do a good job for you.
Someone who is more concerned with results.

Osteopathy started in a hot state in America in the late 19th century. We've just had the 150th year of the first school opening.

Hot weather allows you to do more with less effort than in cooler regions, more "lightening bonesetter" than "body adjustment".
Each approach has its merits and most of the time practitioners use a mix of both.
This still requires a level of learned and well practiced skill.
In these heatwave conditions patients should find I spend more of their treatment on specific work rather than sweating through a full body adjustment.
This is not being less thorough - certainly in the short term - but should prove less taxing to both parties.

How massage is done in these conditions beats me :D