I'm very excited to be speaking about the Value of Marketing to New Therapists at the Q Academy's (Brisbane Campus) Careers Evening this Thursday from 7.00pm - 7.30pm.
Prospective massage students are welcome to attend this free event. Please contact Q Academy on 1300 20 40 80 for more information about the Careers Evening.
Hope to see you there!
In my mission to try as many massage school clinics as possible, I ventured into the Australasian College of Natural Therapies clinic in Sydney last week.
I booked in for a one hour remedial massage, as I hadn't had that type of massage for ages. Remedial massage is deliberately firm and really gets into the muscles and tissues. It's in these kind of massages that you often "discover" tense areas in your body that you weren't even aware were tense.
The clinic was professionally run, and the treatment rooms were basic, but clean and comfortable. My therapist introduced herself to me, did a quick postural assessment and ask where I'd like her to focus on. Neck and shoulders please...a very typical reply!
She was using a massage balm instead of oil and we discussed the pros and cons of oils vs balms. The balms didn't seem as greasy as oils, but still provided good glide - this is important when you're trying to roll smoothly over tense or dense areas of muscle.
Interestingly, the therapist started working on my lower back and detected tension there (surprise surprise for a person who'd went most of the week curled over a computer!). She then started to work on my glutes - another area where a lot of people store tension - and repressed anger, I once learnt in a personal development course. I was trying to pay attention to the techniques she was using (if I like the way something feels in a treatment, I always ask the therapist to show me what they're doing), but started to drift into the land of nod. Even though the massage was very firm, it still had the overall effect of relaxing me.
At the ACNT clinic, instructors actually come into the treatment room mid-massage to observe what their students are doing. This is the first clinic I've visited where that's happened! I had been asked prior to the massage if this was ok. The instructor observed for a bit then started to give my therapist some tips about how to work particular areas up the side of my shoulder. He then demonstrated on one side of my shoulder while she tried on the other side.
Hands on training like this is invaluable for therapists, and I was really impressed at the quality of teaching, and the supervision of students. I believe that the more clinic hours students do under such close supervision, the better therapists they'll be when they go out to do it commercially.
The ACNT clinic offers a wide range of treatments including massage, naturopathy, herbal medicine, nutritional consulations, aromatherapy, homoeopathy, reflexology and beauty treatments.
At $30 for a one hour remedial massage, this is one of the best value massages I've had - particuarly as the clinic is in the city (Foveaux Street, near Central Station).
The clinic is available to the public - check out their website, call to make a booking on 02 9218 8855 or email clinicreception@acnt.edu.au. I highly recommend it!
Massage Schools Queensland (MSQ), the school where I'm currently doing my reflexology studies, runs a student clinic, whereby students practice on members of the public, at highly discounted prices.
I'd come across the clinic concept when I did my massage studies in the UK, and had to participate in one clinic day. It seems to be different in Australia, or certainly at this school. Cert IV students at MSQ are required to do 40 hours of massage in the clinic, on top of their 100 or so practice hours outside of the school.
I think it's a great idea that benefits the soon-to-be massage students by giving them a broader range of experience while they're still under the guidance of teachers, while giving the public access to massage and other therapies such as aromatherapy, remedial massage and reflexology at greatly reduced prices.
Until I'd participated in a clinic day and received a massage at one, I'd always been a bit sceptical about whether I wanted a "beginner" practicing on me. However, I was extremely impressed at the quality of the massage I had at the MSQ clinic last week - done by one of my reflexology study buddies after our class.
Everything about the clinic, the pre-treatment consultation and the massage was professional. It was more thorough, in fact, than many massages I've paid full price for.
I think the main benefit of student clinics is that the students are keen to do their massage well, and are constantly receiving feedback from tutors and other students in class, and then put it to practice immediately in the clinic. It also simulates an actual clinic environment, so students gain relevant experience in the logistics of back-to-back appointments, changing treatment rooms over and building rapport with clients in a short period of time. It's also a great, cheap way to try out massage if you've never had one.
I completely recommend the MSQ clinic and am looking forward to another massage in a couple of weeks.
Check out your local massage school's clinic - chances are you'll save money and get a great massage treatment!
