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does anyone have experience with doing massage in a hospital setting? starting up? billing?

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Hi, Kathy--

 

I worked at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle in what then was called the Refugee Clinic for almost a decade. Unfortunately, I can't address your billing questions, because I was funded by a grant. Exploring that, such as the community outreach/service grants offered by the MTF or other philanthropic organizations, may be an option you want to consider.

 

Two of the issues with starting up are getting privileges to practice (which means your malpractice and liability insurance have to be in place) and negotiating space to set up. Often, the second one is truly difficult, because space in hospitals is often at a premium. If you have a mentor already working in the hospital to help you figure these issues out, the process can be so much smoother than if you try to do it all by yourself from scratch. Do you have someone on the inside to guide you, or are you approaching them cold?

 

cheers,

 

Raven

it was in discussion with a hospital emplyee that these questions came up, some of the doctors and nursing staff are trying to get massage in the hospital to address pain management, stress, and insomnia issues, with less narchotics they are having trouble figuring out compensation for LMT's because there in limited insurance carriers in WI that cover Massage so funds would have to come from somewhere else, I am pretty happy with my private practice but I would like to see massage offered in our local hospital, so I am trying to gather info for them

Those are some really great areas to be working on.

 

I don't want to mislead you that it will be an easy process (hospitals are incredibly bureaucratic, even when they're *not* financially squeezed as they are now), but I do think it will be incredibly worth it.

 

Right now, I am shattered by a bad case of the flu, but when I am feeling better, I will put together a summary of the evidence on hospital-based massage for you, and post it here. I'll email a reminder to myself so I don't forget, because this bug has me totally wiped at the moment.

 

Of course, if Kim Goral or Chris Moyer has already done the work, I will yield the floor to one or both of them. :)

 

Otherwise, when I'm feeling back to my old self again, I'll get to it, most probably over the weekend.

There are two types of hospital massage.  I have done it both for the icu nurses as stress management and for patients

 

If you bill the patient via insurance, you then need to worry about HIPPA laws, etc - I found it not worth it.  I first did the nurses as volunteer work and advertising for me.   This was probably the best "advertising" I have ever done.

 

Once the requests went up to more than several hours a week, I negotiated a contract with the hospital,    The patient massage came after that and was added to the hospital contract.  Since I was an employee of the hospital, I did not have to worry about malpractice, etc.

 

The other thing to realize about malpractice insurance is that you are more likely to get sued if you have it than if you don't.  $$ is what they want.

 I am smashed by a bad situation of the flu, but when I am sensation better, I will put together a conclusion of the proof on hospital-based rub for you, and publish it here. I'll e-mail a memory to myself so I don't ignore, because this bug has me completely cleaned currently.For more detail on massage therapy you can get from this forum..

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