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Profiling Osteopathy in New Zealand: Insights into Practitioner Engagement with Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) and Musculoskeletal (MSK) Care
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Profiling Osteopathy in New Zealand: Insights into Practitioner Engagement with Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) and Musculoskeletal (MSK) Care

Kesava Kovanur Sampath, Nathan Berg, Jonathan Llyod Paine, Paul Orrock and Clive Standen
International journal of osteopathic medicine, Vol.First online, 100788
17/09/2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijosm.2025.100788
Appears in  Recent Faculty of Health Publications

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Abstract

Musculoskeletal (MSK) pain is, unsurprisingly, the most common reason for consultations with osteopaths in New Zealand (NZ) [1]. Perhaps less widely appreciated is that MSK pain also ranks among the most frequent reasons why people consult with general practitioners, based on data from Australia, the UK, Denmark and in multi-country studies [1-4]. MSK pain is under-reported [5], its costs and burden of care are substantial, and the “impact of these conditions on the health service and society will continue to rise as life expectancy increases” [6]. One in four adults in New Zealand (NZ) is affected by disability resulting directly from MSK conditions [7], causing significant declines in health and quality of life [8, 9]. MSK conditions accounted for 16.2% of NZ’s aggregate health expenditure in 2014, ranking second only to cardiovascular disease (18.7%) [10]. NZ’s population of older adults (≥60 years) is expected to double over the next 50 years (from 16% at present) [10], suggesting that unmet need for MSK-related consultations is unlikely to abate anytime soon. To better understand the clinical and economic outcomes associated with MSK pain and the role of osteopathy as part of NZ’s allied health work force, the investigation of osteopaths – their characteristics, their clients’ characteristics, clinical decision making and financing – is an obvious research priority.

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