Dr Legendre

Seychelles’ only osteopathy clinic, the Osteo Clinic, officially opened its doors in Victoria some four years ago. During this time, the Osteo Clinic team has been helping local patients of all ages and walks of life to improve their health and wellbeing, through the manual form of medicine that focuses on the whole body.

Dr Marc Legendre, owner and chief osteopath, is fully qualified with a five-year degree from the renowned French institute, Institut Superieur d’Osteopathie du Grand Montpellier, France. The Clinic now has a team of two French-trained osteopaths, both specialised in various conditions and treatments.

Over the years, the Osteo Clinic has grown in popularity and its offering, and now offers a wide range of services from its conveniently-located Providence clinic.

Seychelles NATION had a chat with Dr Legendre on osteopathy, the benefits and the business.

What is osteopathy?

“Osteopathy is a manual form of medicine, a holistic treatment. We work on different bones, muscles, ligaments and connective tissue, to treat different visceral and musculoskeletal disorders.”

Osteopathy is based on the principle that well being depends on all above-mentioned bodily aspects functioning smoothly together. It is a way of detecting, treating and preventing health problems by moving, stretching and massaging an individual’s muscles and joints using a range of techniques.

“When a patient comes to us, first off, we find out about their medical history to register them and we conduct extensive osteopathic tests before working on the dysfunction. Someone might come in with shoulder-pain, but through our treatment we can identify the root cause of the issue and treat that directly. We try not to just focus on symptoms but to correct the underlying issue that is causing the problem.”

“It is a pain-free and non-invasive treatment, and we do not prescribe medication. It is very safe and is for everyone from newborns, young children, expectant mothers, sportsmen and sportswomen and the elderly.”

A session at the Osteo Clinic lasts between 45 minutes up to an hour, with the pre-treatment phase taking up to fifteen minutes. As explained by Dr Legendre, the treatment is adaptive to each patient, and it is thus extremely important that the osteopaths are made aware of any underlying illnesses or diseases.

The benefits of osteopathy

Through physical manipulation, stretching and massage, osteopaths aim to relieve muscle tension, reduce pains, increase the mobility of joints, as well as enhancing blood supply to tissues, thus helping the body to heal.

Dr Legendre notes that a significant proportion of patients need treatment for stress, acid reflux, and many come in with back pain.

Osteopaths are also trained to help with neck pain, shoulder pain and elbow pain (for example, tennis elbow), arthritis, problems with the pelvis, hips and legs, sports injuries, muscle and joint pain associated with driving, work or tensions and strains arising from pregnancy.

Some issues may be resolved within one session, while others may require a few sessions to address, especially if the individual has suffered from the condition over a prolonged period of time.

For those engaged in sporting activities, pushing their bodies to the limit means they need some adjustments and release from time to time.

“We advise clients, once their initial issue has been resolved, to come back once or twice a year for a check-up, and for the kids, a bit more frequently, since they are still growing.”

Clinic expansion since establishment

The clinic now has two osteopaths including Dr Legendre himself and Dr Poeiti Teisseire who joined him just under two years ago.

Both are trained from the same institute and were practicing in France before.

As part of its expansion, the clinic moved to Providence, and business is doing well thus far, Dr Legendre confirms.

“When I first visited Seychelles some years ago, I thought there was a need and an opportunity here for such a service. I noticed that there were only physiotherapy services available. Physiotherapy and osteopathy are complementary treatments; in general, physiotherapists tend to focus on rehabilitation, whereas osteopaths focus on maintenance or ‘prehab’. In fact, we work closely with the Physiotherapy Unit of the Ministry of Health, and we sometimes refer patients to them. We work together.”

“I think the business has been successful because we have been able to prove that osteopathic treatments are effective. Patients coming to us with a problem are satisfied after one or two sessions that their problem has been resolved.”

Dr Legendre hopes to further expand the business by offering specialised packages for companies and organisations whose workers are engaged in manual work, as well as pregnant mothers and newborns. Earlier in January, the Clinic launched new packages for new and expectant mothers.

Accessing the service

The Osteo Clinic is open from 9am to 6pm during the weekdays, and on Saturday mornings.

It works on an appointment basis, and patients and potential patients are advised to call prior to visiting.

For those on Praslin and La Digue, Dr Legendre and Dr Teisseire travel to Praslin when demand arises, to offer the treatments.

Advice to people to keep themselves healthy

“The more you move, the healthier your body will be, because the muscles are stretched and will keep your mobility and the result is less pain. Movement is very good for the body.”

“Prevention is better than cure, and we have a large number of repeat customers who come back for maintenance and regular check-ups. Prevention is a really important principle in osteopathy and ensures we catch potential issues early on and get treated as quickly as possible.”

“The healthier the diet, the better the body will feel with less inflammation in the liver and the stomach. Drinking a lot of water is also important,” Dr Legendre concluded.

Source: Seychelles Nation