Massage Therapy Body of Knowledge

Comment

Comment by Mike Hinkle on November 15, 2009 at 9:32pm

Hi Bert,

I agree on every point except, does it have to be Shiatsu?

Comment by Bert Davich on November 15, 2009 at 9:16pm

Hi Mike,
Regarding energy work in school, I took a 100 hour Shiatsu course in my initial training. That was in addition to the 500 required hours. I will always be grateful for having that opportunity and education. The Shiatsu was a major factor in choosing the school I attended. I had a background in Asian arts that included some practical applications of Shiatsu/Acupressure, so it was not new to me. I had already experienced some of what could be done with these applications. Teaching an introduction in a school program is a good idea, but even a 100 hour course is not enough for competency. I am able to integrate Shiatsu into my bodywork, but that is possible because of the practical background I had to begin with.

Your comment about western acupuncture Vs eastern (Chinese) is a great case in point. In China they go to school and apprentice for 10 years before they are considered ready to practice. In the U.S. Chiropractors take a 6 month course and hang a shingle. I don't believe anyone can be ready in 6 months, or for that matter in 4 years. Right now as we speak, the Chinese are having trouble getting their best students to participate in Chinese medicine because they can be ready to practice western medicine and enjoy the income benefit in 1/2 the time.

My heart is with your comment on teaching a combination of the 2, but practically, it would require an additional 100 hours just to teach the basics of Shiatsu and another X hundred hours to turn out therapists ready to practice.

Regarding the BOK and energy work, there should be a clear differentiation between meridian work and energy work that does not involve touch. This brings up the point i have been making about using a common taxonomy to describe techniques rather than use modality language. Shiatsu, in it's many forms, uses many techniques that are found in other modalities, from cross fiber stretching to searching for 'tender points' in a muscle without regard to where a meridian or Ki point is presumed to be. Does that description sound similar to trigger point work? (Chinese trained acupuncturists also search for tender points for some needle placement) I realize the 'intent' may be different but that cannot be adequately described in scientific terms. The only way to differentiate is to state meridian work as a specific.

Comment by Mike Hinkle on November 15, 2009 at 5:03pm

Carl, I agree about the insurance.

But, I still feel there has to be a way to add energy work to school programs. TMC should have more than the week we had on it. I don't feel we should only learn western (scientifically proven) accepted classes. The western acupuncture does not seem to have the same affect, as eastern taught methology, so I am inclined to feel the same about massage. Especially with, so many bodyworkers foregoing training here and returning to Eastern lands repeatedly, taking classes from Masters. My vote will go towards a combination of the two in school.

Comment by Laura Allen on November 15, 2009 at 11:11am

Carl, you said to lobby the associations to repudiate the paper. The associations are the ones who have representatives working on the project. Are they likely to repudiate their own work? Volunteers from AMTA, ABMP, NCB, FSMTB and the Massage Therapy Foundation are the ones on the task force.

Comment by Carl W. Brown on November 15, 2009 at 10:21am

Mike, you had a good point earlier about the fact that many people find different types of energetic work useful. I believe that while people can work without it, and because of that should not be in the entry level BOK, it is probably useful to expose people to the alternatives that they may which to explore.

Like the insurance issues it would probably be a good part of the curriculum to provide the person ideas of what is available to them as they expand their skills.

Comment by Mike Hinkle on November 14, 2009 at 7:52pm

Thanks, Carl.

Comment by Carl W. Brown on November 14, 2009 at 6:08pm

Mike I think that insurance billing probably belongs in an advanced category. Not many MTs bill insurance and thouse that do are probably experienced and have advanced training. Probably more important is that people know that if they do electronic submission a whole extra level of HIPPA privacy and regulations kick in. It is not too hard to learn insurance billing but the important part is that they may not know about the implications of federal law once health information is encoded and transmitted electronically. While not part of a coherent BOK, I feel that in additional to minimal competency the training should include information that is useful to guide them as they develop further.

Comment by Mike Hinkle on November 14, 2009 at 1:28pm

Thanks for both, Michael!

Comment by Michael McAleese on November 14, 2009 at 12:12pm

sorry for the second post... they need to know that it is not a get rich fast thing as some folks out there teach..... I do not I tell my students to stay away from Insurances

Comment by Michael McAleese on November 14, 2009 at 12:10pm

entry level is a good place to start with about Insurance reimbursements the in and Outs of it. they need to know the Pro/cons of it otherwise they can get caught up in the cycle of it all...

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