Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/68175
MASSAGE THERAPY BODY OF KNOWLEDGE MTBOK's Scope of WHAT IS THE MTBOK? By definition, a body of knowledge— regardless of the profession—is described as a "compendium of what an individual must know and/or be able to do, to successfully work in a specific field."1 For the massage community, this information was typically formulated on a case-by-case, therapist-by-therapist, school-by-school, job-by-job, or state- by-state basis, with any congruence occurring by happenstance. The goal in creating the MTBOK was to create consistency in the various guidelines affecting therapists and to define what massage therapy is. A detailed and thoughtful body of knowledge, say the MTBOK developers, will ultimately help drive the recognition and growth of massage therapy. The directive of the MTBOK development group was to create an inclusive, transparent conversation about guidelines that could be universally applicable and collectively agreed upon by all stakeholders in the massage profession, but which were also independent from the control or influence of any single group. The goal was to focus on entry-level massage practice guidelines, as well as create non-regulatory standards across the academic, research, and licensing arms of massage therapy. More than a dozen organizations originally came to the MTBOK table in 2008 to develop consensus regarding definition and scope of practice issues, but only five entities transitioned into the overarching MTBOK Stewardship group meant to facilitate the process, including Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals (ABMP), American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA), Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB), Massage Therapy Foundation (MTF), and the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB). ABMP and AMTA provided the financial support and/ or other assistance for the effort, but Practice Exclusions A massage therapist's scope of practice is one of the areas outlined in the new massage therapy body of knowledge (MTBOK) document. While some of these exclusions may be helpful to the client, they likely require additional licensing, certification, and training. While the laws of specific states and local jurisdictions may have the ultimate authority over the scope of massage therapy practice, some of the things not part of an MT's scope of practice under the MTBOK include: • Acupuncture, Chinese pharmacology, or moxibustion using needles. After months of conversations and due diligence, the MTBOK group released its final document, which is meant to be "a living resource of competencies, standards, and values that inform and guide the domains of practice, licensure, certification, education, accreditation, and research."2 Mastery of this information, • Application of ultrasound, electrotherapy, laser therapy, microwave therapy, injection therapy, diathermy, or electronic nerve stimulation. • Depilation, waxing, hair extractions, electrolysis, or cosmetology. • Diagnosis of medical or orthopedic conditions/illnesses. • Diet or nutritional counseling. • Ear candling. • Genital, intra-anal, intra-vaginal manipulation or applications. according to the MTBOK group, ensures the knowledge and skill sets necessary to effectively practice massage therapy at an entry level. • High velocity/low amplitude thrust force to any articulation of the body as performed in chiropractic, osteopathic, or naturopathic adjustments. • Naturopathy, homeopathy. • Prescribing, changing, administering, or dispensing medications, over-the-counter drugs, or herbal remedies. • Prescription of exercise, including personal fitness training, Tai Ji Quan, qigong, or yoga instructor training. • Psychological counseling, hypnotherapy, or guided imagery to support counseling. none of the stewards were involved in the development of the document. This distance was meant to ensure the document's nonpartisan status. The central voices were those of the eight task force members, a group of diverse, uniquely qualified volunteers from a variety of massage and bodywork disciplines who were selected by the stewards. After the task force members' deliberations, the document was subjected to two rounds of public comment. 46 massage & bodywork july/august 2010 WHY THE BOK PATH? "There has been recognition over the years that a BOK is an important thing that helps define what a profession is," says Chip Hines, project manager for the MTBOK group. Hines is a former senior federal government project manager, licensed massage therapist, and former advanced bodywork instructor at the Baltimore School of Massage. Using his certified project management expertise, he provided support to the MTBOK task force volunteers as they developed the guidelines. Hines says an increasing number of groups within the health- care profession have their own BOK to provide consistency on how things are approached and learned. Nurses, anesthesiologists, even podiatrists have their own BOK, which helps to define their work. Many felt the time for a BOK within the massage community was long overdue. Part of the delay was likely the very thing that makes the profession special. "While the breadth and diversity of the MT profession is broad, it's hard to pin down what massage therapy is and does," Hines says. "But it was time to sit down and create a BOK to fully represent the field of massage." Hines says most BOK documents are built by the primary organization within a specific field, but massage therapy is too diverse for one voice to chime in alone. That is why all massage and bodywork stakeholders were