Features Collaboration Practice
Alberta massage therapists association turns 60

“It’s a pretty incredible time to be involved in the profession, and
specifically, with the MTAA,” said Pamela Kats, MTAA president. “It’s
not every day that you get to be part of such a revolutionary
organization. For myself, the best part is being able to look at things
such as our previous vision statement and realize that we actualized it.
How many organizations can truly say that?”

Since 1953, the MTAA
has been a provincially focused, non-profit organization exclusively
representing massage therapists, and was one of the founding members of
the Canadian Massage Therapist Alliance. Once considered a “fringe”
therapy, massage therapy is now the most widely accessed complementary
alternative medicine (CAM) in Canada, with $1.5 billion spent annually
on massage therapy across Canada and about 1.5 million accessing massage
therapy care, the MTAA said.

“The MTAA is proudly synonymous
with the massage therapy profession in Alberta, serving as a flagship
for Alberta massage therapists who believe in the importance of
providing quality massage therapy care to the Alberta public,” the MTAA
said in a statement.

There are more than 800 massage therapists in Alberta alone.

Recognizing
the need for a larger evidence base to advance the credibility of the
massage therapy profession, the MTAA has announced its sponsorship of a
research grant specific to massage therapy, which is being offered in
co-operation with the Interdisciplinary Network for Complementary
Alternative Medicine (IN-CAM). 

“Massage Therapy is well on the
way to being a formal health profession, with regulation under the
Health Professions Act in Alberta and several other jurisdictions in
Canada on the horizon,” the association said. “The MTAA’s long history
of setting and maintaining high standards for entry to practice,
professional development and upholding accountability to the Alberta
public are what make our organization truly unique and a much-needed
staple in the Alberta non-profit and health-care landscape.”

Announcements
regarding various celebrations being held throughout the year can be
found by visiting the MTAA website www.mtaalberta.com.