Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/72312
Without the establishment of a regulatory college, "There is no solid way for someone to have recourse if hurt by a therapist," says Chandra Kastern, president of the Massage Therapist Association of Alberta. "There's no one body to come down with a hammer on MTs." She points out that some instances of impropriety don't lend themselves to civil or criminal action. For instance, a massage therapist could ask a client invasive questions. "That crosses the line ethically; in a civil court it means nothing." Kastern says peers would see ethical faults differently from the way a court might see the situation. "There's a whole lot of fear about regulation," Kastern says. However, she predicts that when regulation goes through, politicians will not only have public protection in mind, but also the well-being of people in the profession. "You can't suddenly axe people from their jobs. Legislators are not going to regulate in an exclusive manner. It doesn't happen like that and it won't happen for massage therapy in Canada." She suggests a grandfathering process would protect therapists who haven't attained a twenty-two hundred-hour competency, allowing them to continue to work and upgrade to the new standard. COMPETING VISIONS OF REGULATION Until a consensus among lobby groups is achieved, regulation of more provinces might be stymied. The opposing models of massage regulation hinge on whether regulation would embrace a one-category or multi-category model. The CMTA advocates a single category model in which massage therapists attain a minimum twenty- two hundred-hour level of competency to qualify to practice the profession. "Multi-tiering training doesn't work. We view it as lowering of competency standards." Damon Marchand, president, Canadian Massage Therapy Alliance massagetherapy.com—for you and your clients 55