How do you hire & retain a massage therapist in your clinic or spa?

Maximizing the Value of Massage Therapy in Your Facility

If you're fortunate enough to have massage therapy available in your facility, congratulations! The benefits of having a skilled massage therapist on staff are immense. Massage therapists excel in assessing and treating soft tissue dysfunction, alleviating pain and stress, and providing focused, personalized care during every session. A healthcare clinic without a qualified Registered Massage Therapist (RMT) is missing out on enhancing its treatment offerings. But there's one significant challenge: finding and retaining these valuable professionals.

The demand for massage therapists is exceptionally high. Nearly every facility is hiring, but there are not enough qualified practitioners to meet the demand. As the owner of a school offering a world-class massage therapy diploma program, I frequently receive inquiries from employers eager to know when our next group of graduates will be ready or if they can speak with our students about job opportunities. We strive to support these requests through an annual career fair, partnerships, networking, and school visits. However, the reality is that there are more job openings than graduates. Most of our students receive multiple job offers and often have signed contracts weeks before they graduate.

Employers struggling to attract or retain excellent massage therapists often seek our advice. Based on years of experience and feedback from our alumni, we have compiled a list of key considerations for employers.

1. Recognize Their Education
Massage therapy students undergo two years of intensive training in anatomy, physiology, pathology, assessments, techniques, treatment planning, therapeutic exercise, hydrotherapy, ethics, research, and professionalism. This rigorous education is far from a weekend course or a short-term program. It's challenging and intense, and in our opinion, it could and should be a four-year degree program.

2. Understand That Massage Therapy Is Healthcare
RMTs are experts in the musculoskeletal system, familiar with all potential injuries and health conditions affecting their patients. They are muscle specialists who understand how muscles function, respond to injury, heal, and improve. RMTs also address issues with supportive tissues like tendons and fascia and treat a wide range of conditions, including nerve lesions, chronic pain, mental health disorders, and arthritis.

3. Acknowledge the Energy It Requires
Providing massage therapy demands significant physical effort, mental focus, and emotional grounding to deliver safe, effective, and ethical treatment. RMTs typically spend an hour with each patient, most of which involves hands-on work. They meticulously observe and respond to their patients' needs, plan home care or future treatments, and document this information in patient charts. They need time between appointments to clean equipment, reset their room, and take a moment for themselves to ensure they can give 100% to their next patient.

4. Compensate Fairly
Compensation should reflect the massage therapist's experience and specialization, with therapists taking home between 50% to 80% of the treatment cost. No RMT works a 40-hour week as it would lead to injury and burnout. Most treat between 20 to 30 patients per week and need to earn a good living from these sessions. They are dedicated to helping people and making a positive impact and deserve fair compensation for their efforts.

These are some key strategies to ensure that your massage therapist thrives in your clinic or spa. By valuing their education, recognizing their role in healthcare, understanding the demands of their work, and compensating them fairly, you can create an environment where they can succeed and, in turn, enhance the quality of care your facility provides.