Students must demonstrate that they are ‘fit to practise’, which means having the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed to meet the requirements of the Osteopathic Practice Standards. Education programmes will support the development of professional behaviours that underpin osteopathic practice and help students to demonstrate their fitness to practise.

Guidance for students and educators

We publish guidance for students and educators to outline the professional behaviours and values that are expected of students of osteopathy. These behaviours and values are essential to be able to graduate and be awarded a ‘recognised qualification’, which is needed for registration with the General Osteopathic Council (GOsC).

The guidance explains:

• the roles of students, education providers and the GOsC in supporting the development of professional behaviours and values
• how to take action when these professional behaviours and values are not demonstrated and there is the potential to impact on patient safety or the reputation of the osteopathic profession

The guidance includes case examples to help illustrate how it might be applied in practice. These examples are fictional and not offered as a ‘gold standard’ approach, but instead show the types of issues which might arise, and how these might be managed.

This guidance also aims to support students to develop as professionals and establish their fitness to practise during their studies, and to set out expectations as to what should happen if a student’s behaviour calls their fitness to practise into question.

The guidance is also available in Welsh.