Competencies, ELAP, JTA and all the surveys you could want
You may have noticed that there are many conversations happening recently about what should be considered “core” to a massage education. We here at COMTA have been dedicated to having this conversation for more than a decade, with the COMTA Curriculum Competencies as our own map of what people have been able to agree upon in this conversation in the past. Periodically we make refinements to our Standards for Accreditation, including these Competencies. We continuously gather feedback, then make refinements and publish them for public comments before making the changes. Sometimes the changes are rejected. The bottom line is that we listen to what you think about our criteria and we make changes when they make sense and enough people agree to them. One of the crucial steps in that process is hearing from as many people as possible and utilizing the information that other people have gathered as well.
THE PROFESSIONAL COMMUNITY NEEDS YOUR INPUT
COMTA is not the only organization listening to the conversations about what should be considered essential to entry-level education in massage. The seven main massage organizations that have joined to form a leadership group are all listening. We want to work together to address the concerns in the massage field. We need your help. We need you to respond to surveys about what you think is important for safe and competent entry-level practice in massage. These surveys are not being conducted by COMTA, but we hope the results will inform us about what the next step is in refining our Standards for Accreditation and our Curriculum Competencies. Please partcipate in the surveys and share them with everyone you know in the field of massage.
- MASSAGE PRACTITIONERS – A number of questions about entry-level practice of massage have been added to the most recent Job Task Analysis (JTA) being conducted by the Federation of Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB). The additional questions will be used specifically to guide the work of the Entry-Level Analysis Project (ELAP, more details here). The JTA survey ends JULY 31st! If you are a massage practitioner and haven’t taken the survey yet, please go do it now at THIS LINK.
- MASSAGE EDUCATORS – In addition to the questions added to the JTA, an additional survey specifically for those involved with massage education has been created. This is your opportunity to express your opinions on what should be taught for entry-level massage practice. This is the link for educators to add their input. If you are also a practitioner, you may respond to both the surveys.
- EMPLOYERS OF MASSAGE THERAPISTS – And where would we be without the voices of those who employ massage therapists? We need to know what our graduates are good at and where we need to bolster their training to be successful in the workplace. If you employ massage therapists/practitioners/technicians, please take a moment to express your thoughts in the employer survey linked here.
Thank you! We’re looking forward to hearing about the survey results. Make sure your voice is included.
Kate Zulaski