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Laura Allen's Blog (160)

Report from the National Convention

I had a blast at the National Convention in Orlando last week. There was so much going on, both in the open and behind the scenes, it was a whirlwind just trying to take it all in. The Rosen Shingle Creek Resort was a beautiful venue for our meeting. My only complaint was that the room was way too small for the opening ceremony; many people couldn’t get in or had to stand the whole time. Otherwise, the acommodations were superior, the food was good, and the staff was very personable and… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on September 29, 2009 at 9:00am — 11 Comments

Sitting on Your Hands?

This weekend while I was teaching ethics to a class of 23 people, I asked how many present have read the Practice Act. As usual, the answer was TWO. I wonder how people think they can comply with the law if they don't know what it is. I wonder if they know they can have input whenever the act is opened, as it occasionally is. I wonder if they know they can attend massage board meetings; that holds true everywhere, not just in my state; a public board is obligated to have open meetings and to… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on September 22, 2009 at 4:48am — 6 Comments

Advanced Certification: The Long-Awaited Announcement from the NCBTMB

The NCBTMB announced today in a press release that the organization is getting on with the task of offering an advanced certification examination, with a target date for the exam to start beta testing in April 2010.

While I applaud any effort from them towards that at all, the issue here is that I think they're a little off target, before they get started. I have heard input from hundreds of therapists who would be interested in gaining an advanced certification in their area of… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on September 8, 2009 at 3:36pm — 34 Comments

New Blood at the NCBTMB

The NCBTMB (National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork) has announced that Angela Palmier and Christopher Alvarado are joining the NCBTMB as Industry Relations Specialists. In my opinion, that's the first positive action they have taken in a while, and I hope it is a sign of better days to come for the NCB.

Both Palmier and Alvarado have long involvements with the massage profession and with AMTA (American Massage Therapy Association). Both have served as… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on September 1, 2009 at 6:37pm — 15 Comments

Milestones

Reposting today's blog from Massage Magazine:

One week from today, I’ll be turning 50. To me it sounds much more impressive when I say “half a century,” instead of “hitting the big five-OH!.”

I think when most people hit one of those numbers with a zero on the end, they pause and reflect, and I’m no exception. In the previous decade, I married the love of my life, went back to college and attended massage school, and switched careers. In this one, I’ve opened a new… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on August 29, 2009 at 7:30pm — 1 Comment

Elections Here, There, and Everywhere

This past week the North Carolina Board of Massage & Bodywork Therapy, of which I am a member, held our annual elections. Last weekend, at our state chapter meeting of AMTA, we had those board elections, and the national AMTA has also just released their ballots and candidate bios.

To me it is a disturbing fact that the same people seem to cycle through every position at the state and national levels. Several of the national candidate bios said things like "I have been an… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on August 23, 2009 at 7:12am — No Comments

How Important is Documentation?

A colleague and I were discussing the importance of documenting massage sessions this morning, so I decided to throw the question out there: How important is documentation?

I can tell you that in my practice, it is extremely important; I have more than a dozen practitioners, and clients may be seen by more than one person. We also file insurance and get a lot of doctor and dentist referrals, and you simply cannot conduct that type of business unless you are willing to keep careful… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on August 13, 2009 at 8:29am — 4 Comments

It's All About Attitude

First off, I would like to apologize to all the people who have made comments on my blog on the Massage Magazine website (where Massage Collage originates) that are not posted. There has been an ongoing problem with this now for several months and for some reason, no comments are being posted. Management is aware of the problem and is working to fix it. It has apparently affected… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on August 5, 2009 at 7:47pm — 9 Comments

Ethics Violations.

Here's my latest attempt at making a video, about …

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Added by Laura Allen on July 23, 2009 at 12:31pm — 1 Comment

Evidence-Based Practice

I have been observing and participating in discussions about the Evidence-Based Practice of Massage Therapy on several different Internet groups lately. It’s interesting to see the interactions between those who think the scientific approach is the only way to go, and those who think the fact that massage makes people feel good is the only evidence that’s needed. And of course there are some who take the middle ground. I probably belong to the latter group.

I think research is… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on July 23, 2009 at 9:09am — 2 Comments

The Ramblemuse Blogs on the Politics of Massage

New update from the Ramblemuse. He has been blogging about the politics of massage since 2002, much longer than I have.

Added by Laura Allen on July 19, 2009 at 7:34am — No Comments

The Ramblemuse Blogs on the Politics of Massage

I'm not the only one who blogs on the politics of massage. Check this out.

Added by Laura Allen on July 16, 2009 at 5:01am — 1 Comment

A Video by Laura Allen on the Fun Massage Network: Gloria the Massage Goddess Interviews Me

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Added by Laura Allen on July 14, 2009 at 7:12pm — 1 Comment

The Answer is No: A Video by Laura Allen

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Added by Laura Allen on July 14, 2009 at 7:08pm — No Comments

Priorities: A Video by Laura Allen

Added by Laura Allen on July 14, 2009 at 7:06pm — No Comments

Priorities: A Video by Laura Allen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1mWvJ-1iXE

Added by Laura Allen on July 13, 2009 at 7:15pm — No Comments

Fun Massage Videos

Thanks to Ryan Hoymes of Massagenerd.com and Gloria Coppola, I am trying my hand at videos. You can see them here on my channel. Many of the meditations I have uploaded are also on my channel. My user name on youtube is "Tlachdga", who was the Celtic goddess of the thunderbolt spear, and it means "one to whom secrets will be revealed."

Added by Laura Allen on July 13, 2009 at 7:00pm — No Comments

AMTA & ABMP Responses to NCBTMB Announcement

Once again, our professional membership organizations have spoken, and once again, the NCBTMB (National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork) is not paying heed. I reported back on June 25 that the NCB has a new initiative in the works to expand their scope from a certifying body into a membership organization.

ABMP (Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals) was the first to respond, and AMTA (American Massage Therapy Association) has now followed suit in… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on July 12, 2009 at 11:45am — 2 Comments

Reposting: Exciting News About Pizza Discounts! (More on the Shenanigans of the NCBTMB)

This is a repost of my June 25 blog, from my primary blog that originates on the Massage Magazine website. It is on RSS feed on my page on this site for those who are interested in my previous posts. Although I occasionally write about other subjects, my main focus is writing on the politics of massage. I will definitely be posting original blogs in this spot. Thanks to Les Sweeney and the rest of the ABMP staff for offering us this great site.

Yes, it’s true! Soon the… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on July 8, 2009 at 10:30am — No Comments

Defining and Advancing High Standards?

The National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork has issued a press release this week regarding the "premature disclosure" of their plan to create a new membership organization.

I scooped their big announcement on my blog, but in fact, I did not publish that until I had seen a number of comments publicly made about it on Facebook. Les Sweeney, president of ABMP, has now issued a letter that has been shared on the Massage… Continue

Added by Laura Allen on July 5, 2009 at 10:46am — 5 Comments