Rafael Zegarra-Parodi

Biography

Rafael Zegarra-Parodi, of French and Peruvian origin, has been a practicing osteopath since 1997 and is a registered member of the General Osteopathic Council (GOsC) in the UK. He has been practicing in Paris, France, since 1999. An active figure in both osteopathic education and research, Rafael has authored 31 peer-reviewed publications (h-index = 10) and has been a research affiliate at the A.T. Still Research Institute in Kirksville, Missouri (USA) since 2014, after completing a full-time research tenure there from 2012 to 2014. From 2014 to 2024, he served as Associate Editor of the International Journal of Osteopathic Medicine (IJOM), the leading journal in the field, and currently contributes to the Executive Committee of DO-Touch.NET, the premier practice-based research network for osteopathic physicians in the USA. Rafael has also collaborated extensively with traditional healers from Native American tribes across North and South America, where health and disease models diverge significantly from Western paradigms. These interactions provide valuable insights and an epistemological framework for exploring the non-physical aspects of the body in both health and disease, as reflected in the body-mind-spirit osteopathic tenet, which has Indigenous origins and was reintroduced in the USA in 2002. In addition to his clinical expertise in managing chronic and acute neuromusculoskeletal conditions and supporting psychotrauma, Rafael seeks to advance person-centered, culturally sensitive, and evidence-based osteopathic practices. To that end, he is also the co-founder of BMS Formation, a French continuing professional development organization dedicated to promoting these values by helping healthcare professionals develop skills within an integrative framework. This approach aims to enhance patient care through contemporary, person-centered management, aligned with current osteopathic principles and scientific developments in the profession.