Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/1299745
34 m a s s a g e & b o d y w o r k n o v e m b e r / d e c e m b e r 2 0 2 0 Scope of practice has been coming up a lot lately as massage therapists consider telehealth and other practice adaptations, so it's important to understand what scope is and why it matters. Working within our scope is not only key to professional practice, it's essential to the health of the profession as we continue to work toward recognition as health-care providers. Scope lives at a strange intersection of competency, law, and ethics. At a most basic level, scope defines the services that a professional is deemed competent to perform and permitted to provide. This leaves a lot of room for interpretation. There are many things we may be sanctioned to provide, but it's up to us to decide whether we, as providers under this umbrella of scope, are competent to do so. Scope isn't about punitive action. Scope is like a guardrail to help us uphold a high standard of professionalism and competency. The only real ways a regulator will even know you've violated scope provisions is if a client (or competitor) files a complaint against you or if you practice in a jurisdiction where regulators pose as clients, and you work outside your scope with one of these regulators. MASSAGE THERAPY AS HEALTH CARE education Scope of Practice What It Is and Why It Matters By Cal Cates