Features Insurance Management
Study on work-related pain among massage therapists underway

The study is led by Wray Barraclough, a registered massage therapist and
professor of Centennial’s massage therapy program, and involves a
survey of massage therapists in Ontario.

“Most would agree that
the success and longevity of a career in massage therapy is dependent on
being able to do the physical work of providing massage therapy
treatments and that the occurrence of work-related pain threatens the
financial livelihood of many,” said Barraclough in a statemet.

She
added research that has been conducted in most health-care professions,
such as physiotherapy, nursing, chiropractic, occupational therapy and
massage therapy, all show that work-related pain or injury is prevalent
in these professions.

“This study moves forward from existing
research and explores if massage therapists experience pain, where it is
located, some contributors to, experience of and management of
work-related pain of registered massage therapists in Ontario,”
Barraclough said.

All Ontario registered massage therapists are
invited to participate in the study by completing an online survey,
which takes between two and 15 minutes to complete. To be eligible,
participants must have been registered by the College of Massage
Therapists of Ontario at some point but need not be currently
registered.

Data and results of the study are expected to benefit
existing and prospective massage therapists by helping them “optimize
their career potential.” Educators of massage therapy will also find
results of this study important to their curriculum, Barraclough said.

Ontario RMTs interested in participating can find the online survey here.

Survey closes April 21, 2014.