Center for Continuing Education of Osteopathy & Manual Therapy

All of our course material in the Pediatric Osteopathy Certification Program is organized into five separate parts which includes the pre-requisite course in a biomechanical approach to Cranial Osteopathy. Students can progress through the Program at their own pace, with the requirement to complete every hands-on practice assignment for every module before moving on to learn the next module. This Program also contains several pre-recorded Webinars of up to 90 minutes each to help round out your learning experience.

Yes, you must have completed a diploma course in Osteopathy, Pediatric Physiotherapy or Pediatric Occupational Therapy to be eligible to enroll in this Program. Ideally you will be an experienced Osteopath, Osteopathic Practitioner or Manual Therapist with minimum one to two years of clinical experience and be established in a practice where you will have access to or be able to recruit Infants and young children in order to fulfill your hands-on practice requirements.

If you completed previous training courses in Cranial Osteopathy with us either in person or online and have been awarded your Certificate of Completion, or you completed a 3 - 5 year in person Osteopathy training program with Cranial Osteopathy being a major component of that program, and you have been integrating a biomechanical approach to cranial osteopathy within your practice for over a year, you are exempt from this course. If this situation applies to you please email our Educational Director at [email protected] to arrange for special enrollment.

You should be a fully qualified Manual Therapist, either Osteopath or Manual Therapist such as a Pediatric Physiotherapist or Pediatric Occupational Therapist to be eligible to for this Program with a minimum one to two years of full time clinical experience, and be currently practicing in a clinical setting where you will have access to infants in order to complete your hands-on practice assignments or can reach out within your community or network to recruit Mothers who are willing to allow their child be your practice model for various hands on homework assignments.

We recommend that you have at least one year of full time clinical experience before starting the Pediatrics courses in this Program. If you have almost completed one year of full time clinical experience in Osteopathy, you can request to enroll and start the Fundamentals of Cranial Osteopathy course now with the expectation of starting the subsequent courses soon thereafter.

You must complete the Fundamentals of Cranial Osteopathy course before first. You will then be eligible to start Part 1. After completing Part 1, you can then complete whichever of the remaining three courses in whatever order you chose. So if you have a passion for Digestive disturbances, you would complete Part 1. Cranial course first, then Part 3. Feeding & Digestion course and so on... Practitioners who already have a complete training in a biomechanical approach to Cranial Osteopathy (not CranioSacral) can apply to be exempt from this course and enroll in a Program that contains only the Pediatrics course.

Each course in this Program has hands-on practice assignments that you must complete at the end of every chapter or module, with the exception of the Pre-Recorded Webinars. You will start with the weekly learning and hands-on practice found within the Fundamentals of Cranial Osteopathy course, followed by the theory and practice format of each Pediatrics course thereafter. All hands-on homework assignments come with worksheet, assessment tools, and specific treatment protocols to guide you through your practice, as well as theoretical case studies. You will need to purchase a soft pliable doll to practice on first before practicing on a live infant. The Interview and assessment tools must also be practice when interviewing a birthmother and assessing an infant. The theoretical case studies are case studies that we provide to you and require you to think about and write an assessment or treatment plan for each case. You do not need to provide models for the theoretical case studies. Homework assignments should be submitted at the end of each course and be approved by your Instructor in order to be approved to progress to the next course.

Part of the requirements to complete the this Certification Program is hands-on practice on live infants or children of the Protocols, Evaluation Approaches, and Manual Techniques taught in each course in the Program. Hands-on practice is necessary to fulfill the homework assignment requirements within each course. As a result, you must be able to confirm that you are currently practicing in a clinic setting where you will have access to Infants. Practicing at home on friends and family does not qualify and is innapropriate to fulfill the requirements for this Advanced Program The recommended approach is to first practice new techniques and protocols on a doll to become comfortable with hand placement on smaller bodies, followed by hands on practice on live infants. You need to either be working in a clinic that serves infants and children or have access in your practice or community to infants and Mothers who are willing to bring their children to you to act as volunteers. It is strongly recommended that you arrange to have access to a variety of live infants before starting a course.

In terms of the recommended timeline, if you are not working full time, you can complete the Program in one year. Full time Practitioners should plan to allocate up to three months for each course in this Program, with natural holidays & breaks in between . A maximum of two years is allowed for a student to complete the program in order to be awarded the Certification. You can expect to dedicate approximately 5 hours per week while completing a course, which includes online audio lessons, video demonstrations, downloading and reading handouts, practicing protocols or watching pre-recorded webinars. Certification is awarded after a student has completed all five parts of the Program, but for CEU/CPD purposes, a student can request an Attestation after completing each Part to submit to their association or governing body to claim CEUs/CPDs as they progress through the Program.