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Standard Fees for Nursing Home Practice

I am starting negotiations with local nursing homes to offer Massage therapy to their staff and residents for 1 day/week on a regular basis.

I was wondering what a standard fee should be for offering this service to them.

We are discussing my being there from 9:00 AM till 5:00 PM - which will take time away from my regular practice, but feel a need to help this part of our community. I will be providing my 30 years experience to them in return for a set amount for the day. I have experience & training in geriatric massage, but have not worked before in this setting.

I look forward to your replies.

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Shelene Taylor on November 1, 2011 at 12:44pm

Hi Steve,

I did the same thing - except we only provided massage to the residents. In my case the residents paid for their own services and what I found was that due to their health issues we often had cancelations and they didn't want to pay, despite our policy, so they would not book if they didn't have the freedom to cancel without paying. Most of them were obviously on a set income.

Is the home going to pay you directly a set amount for the day - no matter how many people you work on, or are they collecting some of your fee from the residents?

What do you feel like you need to make for the day? I am assuming that you probably won't be doing 7 or 8 treatments during the day so what if you charged your normal rate for 4 or 5 treatments for being there the full day?

I understand and applaud your desire to serve this community and if this is a labor of love then choose what amount would really work for you so that you avoid any future feelings of resentment that may arise from not being available to your regular clients on the day you are at the home. Good Luck!

Permalink Reply by Steven Schwartz on November 1, 2011 at 6:39pm

live in one of the poorest parts of the country and already keep my fees low. Fortunately, the cost of living is also low here, so I do not need a lot. The discussions with the nursing home are based on 15 minute seated massage treatments available through out the day and if more is requested (either longer massage or acupuncture), that can be scheduled outside of this time frame based on my regular fees (and possibly a discount for this location)

Permalink Reply by Shelene Taylor on November 1, 2011 at 7:05pm

Sounds like a great opportunity! Sometimes starting off one way and then redesigning as you see how things flow can be a good fit for you and the clients.