Complementary health
Introduction
Since its emergence as an independent profession over 100 years ago, physiotherapy has adapted and evolved its treatment techniques and increased the range and number of patients it can help. This has included investigating and incorporating complementary therapies that link with the core philosophy and practices of the profession.
Physiotherapy aims to restore balance and facilitate the body's own healing responses rather than to target individual disease processes or stop troublesome symptoms. This links directly with the areas of complementary medicine.
It could be said that physiotherapy was one of the first complementary health approaches, having been created by a group of nurses who carried out non-standard treatments.
Traditional, conventional physiotherapy requires physiotherapists to be trained in and practice:
- Massage and manipulation
- Exercise and movement
- Electrotherapy
Chartered physiotherapists are increasingly using alternative health interventions to work with the traditional physiotherapy treatments that link with the above.
Physiotherapists are now developing their skills further and practice in:
- Acupuncture
- Alexander technique
- Aromatherapy
- Craniosacral therapy
- Pilates
- Reflextherapy
- Shiatsu massage
Online complementary health guide
There is a growing interest among people looking for a holistic approach to the treatment of illness and disease. Chartered physiotherapists believe this is important and will look at the 'whole' person taking into account previous medical history, work and lifestyle before making a diagnosis and devising a treatment programme that is tailored to an individual's needs.
Use the headings below to find out more about the therapy of your choice and how it could benefit your health and wellbeing. We will be developing this online guide in future to cover a growing range of these approaches.
- Acupuncture - a treatment using very fine needles, inserted at particular acupuncture points on the body that can help relieve the symptoms of a number of physical and psychological conditions. Acupuncture aims to help the body to heal naturally.
- Massage - a core physiotherapy skill that has been traditionally used by physiotherapists for over 100 years but many people believe it is a complementary medicine. It is a treatment using the hands to manipulate the soft tissues of the body to obtain relaxation, healing and wellbeing.
- Reflex therapy - a gentle, holistic therapy focusing on the hands, feet and head, which mirror precise areas of the body. Manipulation of these parts can relieve many physical and neurological conditions and enhance health physically, mentally and emotionally.
- Craniosacral therapy (CST) - is a manual therapy where the special therapeutic touch encourages structural and physiological rebalancing using the body's own healing energy. CST recognises the importance of the body functioning as a whole.
Clinical Interest Groups
There are a number of clinical interest groups for chartered physiotherapists that are recognised and accredited by the CSP. Some of these groups represent a distinct field of complementary medicine practice as a specific treatment approach. The CSP is grateful to these clinical interest groups that have contributed to this online guide to the different types of complementary health fields chartered physiotherapists are involved in.
