A handful of local massage therapists are back in the classroom to meet new educational requirements put in place by insurance companies.
Several major insurance companies are now only accepting claims from clients of massage therapists with more than 2,200 hours of educational training.
“(The change) has somewhat impacted business in that it made everyone go back to school,” said Carol Smith, owner of St. Albert’s Therassage Clinic Inc., adding four employees have already returned to the classroom.
Sun Life made the change in 2010, with Manulife making the move in October. Alberta Blue Cross is expected to follow suit in May.
Although the change is forcing massage therapists to hit the books, Smith said it is a positive step for the industry.
“We want to be a reputable business and we want to be highly thought of and so this is going to get rid of the people that don’t have the education that all the other people have paid for,” she said.
Smith has 20 years experience as a massage therapist with 1,600 hours of classroom experience.
The new insurance requirement has pushed her towards retirement.
“I was wanting to retire and now, because I don’t want to go back to school myself, I can retire from doing massage,” Smith said, adding she will continue to operate her business.
Massage therapy is not a regulated profession in the province, although there are several associations with whom massage therapists can register.
Smith and most of her team are registered with the Natural Practitioners of Canada, which does not specify required hours of education. Two of her therapists are now registering with the Remedial Massage Therapists Association, which requires 2,200 hours of education.
The Massage Therapist Association of Alberta has a member base of 800, and requires therapists to complete an entry exam and have 2,200 hours of training.
Association spokesperson and massage therapist Chandra Kastern said the change to insurance requirements is bittersweet.
“It’s not ideal that private sector has set a standard but it is ideal that some standard is being put into place,” she said, adding it will ensure clients receive training from qualified practitioners.
Kastern said she understands the frustration some therapists have with the requirement being implemented on short notice, but said the regulation has been a long-time in coming.
She said the province gave the profession the green light to become self-regulated in 2009, although a lack of co-ordination between the associations has left the process at a standstill.
When this decision was made, Kastern said it was clear to practitioners that a two-year educational standard would be regulated, giving them time to brush up on the profession.
