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Finding a massage therapist
who is the best fit for you!
Access to consumer education is
an internet click and a phone
call away; it couldn’t be
easier! As a consumer, you no
longer have to depend solely on
a friend’s referral or on a
listing in the yellow pages when
searching for a new service
provider. Consumer research
allows you to enter into a new
service provider agreement with
confidence in your choices, an
open mind, and high
expectations.
Group practices are gaining
popularity among consumers
because they can accommodate a
variety of consumer needs. Until
recently, group opportunities
have been limited largely to the
spa/hotel industry, an industry
primarily focused on meeting a
consumer’s immediate “feel good”
needs. Time and again, our
customers have expressed relief
at finding a group practice that
centers primarily around a
patient’s overall therapeutic
needs for treatment or
relaxation.
We recommend that you start your
search for a massage therapist
with a well-run group practice;
thus avoiding common mistakes
that take away from an
unforgettable experience:
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Identify your goals:
Are you looking for a
relaxing session or are you
looking for pain relief?
Finding a balance between
strictly following treatment
plan and accommodating your
daily changing needs allows
you keep in touch with your
whole person. Skilled
therapists will find a way
to signal to you that it is
ok to share your concerns
and needs with them,
especially as you are just
getting to know the
individual therapist and/or
the practice as a whole.
Know that, although you may
need the guidance of your
massage therapist, you are
in control of the session AT
ALL TIMES.
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Make independent choices:
Referrals are the best
place to get started when
searching for a massage
therapist, but an
independent interview will
tell you if your friend’s
choices match what you are
looking for in a massage
therapist. When phoning or
emailing, feel free to
ask questions. Caring
massage therapists will
readily provide you with
information about their
training, background and
experience, prices, length
and recommended type of
treatment, hours of
operation and booking
procedures. They may even
ask you some questions in
order to find out if they
will be able to meet your
needs. It is important to
feel good with your decision
in choosing your therapist.
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Ease of access to
scheduling: a group
practice with online
scheduling offers you the
most convenient and direct
access to making an
appointment. Expect the
website to be chock full of
up-to-date consumer
information that will allow
you to feel comfortable with
independently scheduling an
appointment. Even if an
on-line booking system is
available, these practices
should have reception
readily available to answer
any questions or booking
needs you have over the
phone.
-
Do
not wait over a week for an
available appointment: Customers often loose touch
with their “favorite”
massage therapist if the
therapist has a solo
practice; as the therapist’s
practice grows, available
appointment slots diminish
for the customer. Waiting a
long time between treatments
may negatively affect the
treatment outcome, as
effective treatment plans
often call for regular
sessions at first. Group
minded practitioners are
very experienced with
sharing a customer’s
treatment plan. This not
only offers continuity in
treatment, but it also
offers a variety of
therapists to accommodate
scheduling needs. In a group
practice, consumers should
be able to cross between
therapists without feeling
like they will hurt a
therapist’s feelings. Same
day or next day appointments
are commonly available in
these practices where
customers seek a variety of
therapists.
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Access to a variety of
skills, techniques, and
personalities: Variety
and personal choices should
be foundational in a group
practice. At Hands on
Health, we encourage you to
try the different varieties
of wellness that are
offered; a single
practitioner cannot possibly
offer all the wellness
varieties that are
available. Feel free to
explore the different
modalities that a group
practice makes accessible to
you. Also, expect your
massage therapist to offer
you self-care exercises and
stretches for your total
body wellness.
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Group support:
Therapists involved in a
group practice have greater
access to peer review,
technique based education,
and business support. With
adequate business support,
they have more time
available to learn and pay
attention to your individual
therapeutic needs. At Hands
on Health, customers and
staff have access to a
growing lending library that
includes books, articles,
internet research, and
self-care tools.
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Therapeutic planning:
Choosing a massage therapist
that suits your style and
needs goes beyond assessing
the therapist’s technical
skill. Expecting too little
of a massage therapist will
give you less of an
experience. When entering
into a series of treatments
for a pain condition, expect
your massage therapist to
develop a comprehensive
treatment plan that gives
you and idea of how
many treatments it will take
to start maintaining
results, whether the
treatment will encompass
long term planning, payment
and savings options, and a
results based maintenance
plan.
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Customized sessions:
Expect your needs to be
customized just for you;
does the therapist take your
personal preferences into
account and go out of his
way to attend to those
needs? Everyone wants to
feel respected and special;
knowing a customer’s
personal preferences for
music, scents, lotions, and
temperature means a lot to a
customer. Feeling
unconnected in the
depersonalized information
age, consumers are drawn to
customized, individualized
products and services. An
individualized package might
include several services
besides massage such as such
as a paraffin treatment for
hands, reflexology for the
feet, foam rolling for
self-massage and restorative
yoga for postural
rebalancing.
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Customer service,
appearance, & attire:
The massage therapist and
office staff should treat
you with courtesy and
understand their products.
Do they respond to your
questions politely? Do they
respect your privacy? Are
you satisfied with the way
the staff member answered
your questions? Did she
refer you to the appropriate
resource(s)? The office
support staff should know
the difference between the
various styles of massage
and which types are offered.
Customer surveys reveal that
consumers are most
comfortable receiving health
services in clean,
organized, and professional
environments that also
accommodate their needs for
coziness and warmth.
Consumers today seek
practices where their needs
are taken seriously from
beginning to end.
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Choose a place where the
answers to all your
questions are “YES”.
Need we say more?
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