Neuroscience, Body Representations and Osteopathy



in the Cranial Field: An Integrative Approach



Pre-conference Workshop (dreitägig, auf Englisch)



München: 6.-8. Februar 2025



This
three-day workshop with Rafael Zegarra-Parodi aims to provide osteopaths with a structured and evidence-informed framework that integrates neuroscience, medical anthropology and perceptual training, in order to apply osteopathic principles - especially the Body–Mind–Spirit tenet - in a clinically relevant and ethically responsible manner, with a specific focus on interoceptive Manual techniques used in the cranial field.



Dozent: Rafael Zegarra-Parodi



Rafael Zegarra-Parodi is an osteopath of French and Peruvian background, practicing in Paris since 1999. He is a member of the General Osteopathic Council (GOsC) in the UK and has been involved in osteopathic education and research for over 20 years. He is the author of 35 indexed scientific publications, and has an h-index of 11.

He was a full-time researcher at the A.T. Still Research Institute (Kirksville, USA) from 2012 to 2014 and has been affiliated with the institute since then. He also served as an Associate Editor of the International Journal of Osteopathic Medicine (IJOM) from 2014 to 2024.

He currently teaches osteopaths in Europe and the United States, with the aim of strengthening the coherence between clinical practice and current research findings. His recent work focuses on an updated understanding of the osteopathic principle of unity—“Body-Mind-Spirit”—a Native American cultural heritage officially reintroduced by the American osteopathic profession in 2002. Drawing on the tools of medical anthropology, he offers practical guidelines for better understanding and integrating this principle into contemporary, rigorous, and personcentered practice.

Married to a Swiss citizen, he embraces an international and intercultural vision of health, while remaining rooted in the specificities of osteopathy. He is also a co-founder of the BMS Formation, a Qualiopi-certified continuing education organization founded in 2019 to support recent graduates and teachers in developing evidence-based practice models that are compatible with osteopathic principles and suited to the current demands of the healthcare system.

Inhalt


The BodyMind–Spirit tenet, reintroduced into osteopathic discourse in 2002 (Rogers et al.), invites practitioners to go beyond a strictly biomedical paradigm grounded in linear cause-and-effect reasoning. While this tenet is often referenced, it remains under-defined and lacks a clearly articulated clinical skill set.

This course builds on a series of peer-reviewed publications that explore the tenet’s Indigenous legacy - particularly its roots in Native American worldviews that shaped early osteopathic thinking. These perspectives consider health, pain, and healing through both materialistic and non-materialistic frameworks. Reintegrating such views into osteopathic practice can deepen cliniciansunderstanding of patient experiences and foster more inclusive, culturally sensitive care.
Osteopathy in the cranial field, with its emphasis on perceptual and relational aspects of touch, offers a concrete clinical setting in which this tenet can be applied. Therapeutic attitude and interoceptive engagement are central to this process and are supported by contemporary neuroscience and mindfulness-based practices. This Course highlights how these elements can renew and clarify the distinctiveness of osteopathic care today.


Zu erwartende Lernergebnisse



Upon
completion of the course, participants will be able to:
  • Recognize and adapt to complex clinical situations by integrating interoceptive manual skills informed by recent neuroscientific findings
  • Refine palpatory sensitivity and manual perception, particularly in the context of cranial osteopathy
  • Understand and apply how therapeutic attitude influences patient outcomes during interoceptive Manual care
  • Develop clinical intuition through perceptual training and reflective practice
  • Articulate and defend osteopathic reasoning in interdisciplinary dialogue while preserving its distinct conceptual framework
  • Gain insight into Indigenous and other culturally diverse perspectives on body representations, and their relevance in clinical care
  • Explore how mindfulness-based practicessome of which resonate with Indigenous traditionscan
  • enhance therapeutic presence and patient engagement
  • Reflect on and navigate materialistic and non-materialistic worldviews held by patients in a respectful and clinically effective way


Nutzen und Zielgruppe


This course supports the clinical application of osteopathic principles in contemporary care by:

  • Offering a critical reappraisal of the Body–Mind–Spirit tenet and its Indigenous heritage within the historical and ethical foundations of osteopathy
  • Encouraging the responsible use of interoceptive manual techniques, especially in the cranial field, in ways that are informed by current evidence and adapted to modern clinical settings
  • Promoting the inclusion of diverse socio-cultural body representations in therapeutic encounters, thus reinforcing person-centered and culturally respectful care
  • Providing osteopaths with tools to engage ethically with experiential knowledge systems that fall outside conventional biomedical narratives

The target audience are qualified osteopaths seeking to deepen the coherence between their clinical practice and current evidence-based standards, while reaffirming the distinctiveness of osteopathy - particularly through interoceptive manual approaches such as those used in the cranial field. This course is especially relevant for practitioners aiming to integrate person-centered care that respects diverse cultural and experiential representations of the body in health, illness, and healing, within interdisciplinary healthcare settings.



Veranstaltungsort

Unser Pre-Conference Workshop findet im ehemaligen Kloster St. Anton, in der Kapuzinerstraße 38, mitten in München statt. Heute beherbergt das ehemalige Kloster das Institut für publizistische Ausbildung, ifp. Ruhig nahe der Isar gelegen, finden sich hier zahlreiche Lokale in unmittelbarer Nähe. 

Teilnehmende können auf Wunsch im ehemaligen Kloster in einem der 24 Gästezimmer, alle mit Dusche/WC und WLAN ausgestattet, auch übernachten.  

 

 

 

 

Teilnahmegebühren



Unser Frühbucher-Rabatt gilt bis 30. November. 
 
  • Teilnahme Frühbucher                           390 EUR 
    (Gültig bis 30. November) 

  • Teilnahme regulär                                  450 EUR

Bitte beachte:
Hast du deine Teilnahme gebucht, kontaktieren wir dich, um bei Interesse deine Übernachtung in einem der Gästezimmer (3 Zweibettzimmer, 1 Doppelzimmer, 20 Einzelzimmer im ehemaligen Kloster für 79 EUR pro Nacht zu organisieren.

Hast du weitere Fragen, dann kontaktiere uns bitte unter: info@rio-osteopathie.de


Anmeldung



Deine Anmeldung erfolgt über unseren Ticketing-Partner Streavent: 

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