The Manual Osteopathy Association of Manitoba Inc. acknowledges that its social obligations to society dictate the profession’s responsibilities to the patient and the public. The MOAM’s Code of Ethics dictates the fundamental principle that the sole purpose of the osteopathic manual practitioner's professional services is to the benefit of the patient.

1. In the province of Manitoba, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners should refrain from rendering a medical diagnosis, which is a controlled act and therefore outside their scope of practice, unless they hold a license in a health profession that permits them to offer medical diagnoses. However, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners are permitted to render an osteopathic diagnosis.

2. In the province of Manitoba, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners must refrain from performing high velocity low amplitude (HVLA) techniques as it is a controlled act and outside their scope of practice unless they have a license which permits them to perform HVLA joint manipulations.

3. In the province of Manitoba, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners must refrain from taking x-rays as it is a controlled act and outside their scope of practice unless they have a license that permits them to do so.

4. In the province of Manitoba, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners must refrain from performing any treatment techniques that require digital manipulation in bodily openings (anal or vaginal) as putting digits inside these cavities is a controlled act and outside their scope of practice unless they have a license which permits them to do so.

5. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners should maintain the highest standards of professional and personal conduct and must comply with all governmental jurisdictional rules and regulations.

6. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners must commit to the highest standards of excellence and should attend to their patients in accordance with established best practices.

7. Practitioner-patient relationships should be built on mutual respect, trust and cooperation. In keeping with these principles, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners shall demonstrate absolute honesty with regard to the patient’s condition when communicating with the patient and/or representatives of the patient. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners shall not mislead patients into false or unjustified expectations of favorable results of treatment. In communications with a patient and/or representatives of a patient, osteopathic manual practitioners should never misrepresent their education, credentials, professional qualification or scope of clinical ability.

8. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners must preserve and protect the patient's confidential information, except as the patient directs or consents, or the law requires otherwise.

9. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners should employ their best efforts of good faith to provide information and facilitate understanding to enable the patient to make an informed choice regarding the proposed treatment. The patient should make his or her own determination on such treatment.

10. The practitioner-patient relationship requires the Osteopathic Manual Practitioner to exercise greatest care that he or she will do nothing to exploit the trust and dependency of the patient. Sexual misconduct is a form of behavior that harms patients individually and collectively. Sexual misconduct exploits the practitioner-patient relationship and is a violation of the public trust.

11. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners should willingly consult with other health care professionals, such as physicians when such consultation would benefit their patients or when their patients express a desire for such consultation. This action requires written consent from the patient.

 

12. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners should never neglect nor abandon a patient. Due notice should be afforded to the patient and/or representatives of the patient when care will be withdrawn so that appropriate alternatives for continuity of care may be arranged.

13. With the exception of emergencies, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners are free to choose the patients they will serve, just as patients are free to choose who will provide healthcare services for them. However, decisions as to who will be served cannot not be based on race, religion, ethnicity, nationality, creed, gender, handicap or sexual preference.

14. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners must conduct themselves as members of the greater healthcare community dedicated to the promotion of health, the prevention of illness and the alleviation of suffering.

15. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners must use advertising that is truthful and accurate in representing their professional qualifications and degree of competence. Advertising cannot exploit the vulnerability of patients. It cannot not be misleading and must conform to all governmental jurisdictional rules and regulations in connection with professional advertising.

16. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners shall protect the public and the profession by reporting incidents of unprofessional, illegal, incompetent and unethical acts to appropriate authorities and organizations and should stand ready to testify in courts of law and in administrative hearings.

17. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners have an obligation to the profession of manual osteopathy to assure that their behavior does not give the appearance of professional impropriety. Any actions which may benefit the practitioner to the detriment of the manual osteopathy profession must be avoided so as to not erode public trust.

18. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners should recognize their obligation to help others acquire knowledge and skill in the practice of the manual osteopathy profession. They should maintain the highest standards of education and training in the accurate and full dissemination of information and ideas.

19. In the province of Manitoba, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners must refrain from referring to themselves as “osteopaths”. In an effort to follow suit with most other Canadian provinces, the term “osteopath” is reserved for American trained osteopathic physicians who are registered with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba (CPSM) as Doctors of Osteopathy (DO) and for all legal purposes are considered medical doctors in Manitoba. Osteopathic Manual Practitioners can use their designation “DOMP” (Diploma in Osteopathic Manual Practice) and can refer to themselves as “Osteopathic Manual Practitioner”.

​

20. In the province of Manitoba, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners must refrain from performing any treatments via video-conferencing. Manual Osteopathy is a manual therapeutic application and cannot be performed via video- or phone-conferencing. Therefore it can also not be billed as such.