2000 Board of Directors Election- Call for Nominations

The NCBTMB will begin accepting nominations for the 2000 Board of Directors election from now until October 15, 1999. Positions for two Directors and one Public Member are open for election.
If you are interested in serving on the board, please submit a letter of interest and a current resume to the NCB office by October 15, 1999. You will receive additional information about the election process, and a questionnaire to be completed and returned to the office by November 15, 1999. After the Nominating Committee has reviewed all resumes and questionnaires, qualified candidates will be scheduled for telephone interviews.
To be considered for the position of a Director, a candidate must:
• be Nationally Certified in therapeutic massage and bodywork;
• have a minimum of three years’ experience in the profession of therapeutic massage and bodywork; and
• be in good standing with the NCB.

To be considered for the position of a Public Member, a candidate must:
• be able to travel to a minimum of three board meetings per year; and
• participate on committees, receive calls and respond to deadlines.

In addition, the public member candidate shall not:
• be a member of the credentialing profession, be an employee of the profession, have a spouse who is a member of the profession, or be an employee of the certifying agency;
• have derived more than five percent of their income from the profession or certifying agency or have represented the agency for a fee during the past five years;
• be a student in any massage or bodywork training program.

Additionally, each candidate running for a board position should be an independent thinker with good judgment and the capability of making decisions. They should have experience with team work, organizational structure, and be able to support collective decisions. They should be pro-certification, have a broad view of the field, and have an understanding of—or a desire to learn about—not-for-profit organizations, and the political and ethical dimensions of National Certification.
Directors and the Public Member are each elected for a three-year term by the population of certificants who are in good standing with the NCBTMB. The election will take place by way of a mail-in ballot issued around the end of January or beginning of February 2000.
All individuals who meet these qualifications and are interested in serving on the NCBTMB Board of Directors must submit a letter of intent and a current resume to the NCBTMB office, or contact Christine Niero at (703) 610-9015 for more information.

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NCBTMB Acronyms

As NCBTMB continues to survey the activities and information being placed in the industry, we have noticed that many more certificants are using the NCB acronyms in articles, advertisements, etc., and we encourage everyone to continue doing so. While we are pleased to see this occurring, we are seeing some confusion in the use of the different acronyms. Below is a brief description of each acronym and its use.

NCTMB - is the professional designation/credential awarded to an individual certified by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork. This is the acronym to use when referring to yourself as Nationally Certified in Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork.

NCETMB - is the competency credentialing examination developed and administered by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork. It stands for the National Certification Examination in Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork.

NCBTMB - is the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork. It is the organization that gives the examination, awards the professional designation, and administers the entire certification program. This should be used when referring to the organization as a whole or to the Board of Directors

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FROMTHECHAIR

The months must have wings! As you are reading this, I will have only about nine months left in my final term as NCBTMB’s Chair. Many of my activities over the next nine months will be taken to ensure a seamless transition for our Chair-Elect, Neal Cross, Ph.D., to assume the duties of the Chair next spring.
As I look at where the National Certification Board stood just two years ago and where we are today, I have to say that I am very pleased with the progress. Just in our leadership efforts alone, the board adopted and implemented several organizational and governance improvements resulting in greater continuity of the board. Some of these improvements included changing Directors’ terms to three years instead of two; cycling only one-third of Directors off the board each year; adding a second Public Member position; and changing the Vice-Chair position to a Chair-Elect position that spends that year learning the roles and responsibilities of the Chair. These changes have allowed the National Certification Program to continue moving forward.
The last year has been spent gathering feedback about NCB’s program offerings. Specific areas that were examined were the recertification program criteria, the goals of strategic planning, the feasibility of adding specialty and/or advance certification, and the draft Standards of Practice. I would like to offer my special thanks to those of you who have been responding to the several surveys and requests for feedback that the NCBTMB has been disseminating. Your responses are so important to us in order to determine our future direction and for our strategic planning. Now that the National Certification Program has been in existence for seven years, and is more than 35,000 certificants strong, we need to know if the program is serving your needs as a practitioner in the 90’s and if it will be sufficient to take you into the new millenium. So, please continue to respond, and don’t be afraid to mention any other questions we are forgetting to ask!
The Strategic Planning Committee, under the leadership of Marlene Cohen, NCTMB, is really excited about the strategic planning efforts currently underway. The committee has worked very hard in collecting and analyzing data and bringing forth specific recommendations for the board to act upon. Within the next few months we should have a strategic plan to guide us through the next three to five years - one that mirrors your input.
Thank you again for your comments to me and to the board, please continue to let us know what you think. As is our normal practice, we will be holding a reception in the Seattle area for all interested certificants when we meet there in early October. I’m looking forward to meeting those of you who will be able to attend our reception. The specific date, time and reservation process can be found elsewhere in this newsletter.

Cliff Korn, NCTMB
Chair, National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork

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Continuing Education

Another area of confusion we are encountering is in advertisements of approved continuing education courses. Frequently, an ad states that, “this course is NCTMB approved for Category A CEUs.” The proper reference Category A Approved Providers should make is “<name> is approved by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB) as a continuing education provider.”

Certificants: When you are reviewing potential continuing education courses, there is no status as “Category A pending,” “Approved for Category B” etc.
If you have any questions about how to use your credential, or how to refer to your National Certification, please contact the office for assistance. Thanks for helping us promote consistent messages to the public!

NOTE: NCBTMB does not endorse, adopt, approve, nor recommend any offerings of massage therapy and/or bodywork training programs.

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NCBTMB Committees and Task Forces

Who are the people who volunteer their time and energy to NCBTMB? Cliff Korn, Chair of the NCBTMB, recently appointed—or re-appointed—the following people to serve as Committee Chairs. He then approved their recommendations for committee members.
Want to know more about volunteering your time for a committee? The Fall issue will tell you how.

1999-2000 Committee Volunteers

Bylaws:
Chair: Ray Moriyasu
Members: Margaret Avery Moon; Pam Laubscher; Christine Niero

Communications:
Chair: Lynda Solien-Wolfe
Members: Scott Kilbourne; Jan Popovec; Michael Pizzuto; Beth Danner

Continuing Education Provider Review Panel:
Chair: Jean Loving
Members: Genna Browning; Judy Dean; Etta Mascarenes; Bonnie Massey;
Gretchen Miller; Bill Sherwood; Sue Kozisek; Kelly Koteen

Eligibility:
Chair: currently vacant
Members: Susan Hollister; Susan Jernigan; Betty Schafer; Kay Settles; Susan Scoboria; Amy Breen

Ethics and Standards:
Chair: Garnet Adair
Members: Benna Henderson; Jean Middleswarth; Marion Visel; Clifford Korn; Christine Niero

Examination:
Chair: Elaine Calenda
Members: Susan Hollister; Robert Lehnberg; Monica Reno; Paula Schank; Tracy Walton; Marlene Cohen; Paul Parker

Nominating:
Chair: Claudette Laroche
Members: Claude Gagnon; Sharon Marden Johnson; John Balletto, Jr.; Neal Cross; Christine Niero

Recertification:
Chair: currently vacant
Members: Mary Ellen Pennline; Judy Silcock; Susan Schobert; Jerry Weinert; Kelly Koteen

Regulatory/Legislative:
Chair: Sally Hacking
Members: Barbara Benson; Pat Hughes; Michael Murphy; Robert Myran; Kate Jordan; Amy Breen

Strategic Planning:
Chair: Marlene Cohen
Members: Nancy Dail; Clifford Korn; Ray Moriyasu; Michael Pizzuto; Neal Cross; Pam Laubscher; Jerry Weinert; Christine Niero

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Corporate Massage Comes to NCB Staff Members

What can you do to ease the stuffiness in the business offices of corporate America? Give those stressed-out office workers a massage!
Many more corporations are providing massages to their employees as a wellness benefit, and the National Certification Board is no different. Virginia therapist, Paul Barger, NCTMB, has been providing NCB staff members with seated massages. The massages help relieve built up stress and employees walk away feeling refreshed after their session. So, the NCB staff wants to send a special thank you to Paul for keeping us all refreshed and focused!v

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GUESTCOLUMN
By Kathy Chism, NCTMB

What has National Certification done for me lately?

Back in 1996, I graduated from Educating Hands School of Massage in Miami, FL, and took the National Certification Exam. I stayed on as the Admissions Director for the school, taught various classes, and built a private practice. Part of my job as Admissions Director was to inform students that in order to be licensed in the state of Florida, they would have to graduate from a Florida massage school and take the National Certification Exam. While the National Certification Program is a requirement for obtaining licensure in the state of Florida, I feel that it is much more. There are standards and a Code of Ethics to uphold. There is a formal grievance and discipline process to turn to, if necessary. The credential in our possession helps align us with other medical entities, lending credibility to the important work we do as practitioners. As a Florida therapist, I was proud to work in one of the most highly regulated states in the country regarding massage and bodywork. Then my life changed. I fell in love with the National Sales Manager of Living Earth Crafts, we got married, and I moved to his home in northern California!
As I had no network in California to create a private practice right away, I initially applied for work at several high-end spas. Being Nationally Certified opened doors right and left for me. Employers jumped at the chance to hire someone with my education, experience, and National Certification credential. Soon I was asked to write an article on professional ethics (which is not generally taught in California schools) for a local newsletter. Then someone else asked me to teach Reflexology to her employees. As more and more people learned about my qualifications—and that I hold National Certification—the offers just kept coming!
I had heard California was a ‘free zone’ where regulation for massage and bodywork was concerned, but I was shocked when I asked several new therapists what their training had been. Most had only taken the two-week, 100-hour course required for certification. Their final exam was giving the owner of the school a massage, and if he or she liked it, they graduated. I consistently heard stories from various sources that most new massage therapists were considered unreliable and unprofessional in their behavior, and even clients told me horror stories of their experiences.
Another issue confronting massage therapists in California is the view of the police. To practice legally in many California cities, one must go through the degrading process of being fingerprinted (and paying close to $100 for the privilege), and submitting to yearly medical exams to prove one has no contagious diseases. I asked the police if other health care professionals had to submit to these same regulations, and was laughingly told “No, only massage has the widespread problem of prostitution associated with it.” I personally think that if the city officials were better educated about our profession and the National Certification Program, we could avoid a degrading process like this.
After residing in California for several months, I learned that a local well-established school for physical and occupational therapies, the Western Institute of Science and Health, was adding a 1,200 hour massage program that would stress the importance of taking the National Certification Exam upon graduation. I contacted them immediately, and was hired as one of the lead instructors and am helping to create the advanced curriculum. The fact that this school has started such a program speaks to me that people here are finally beginning to understand the importance of a good education and the work of the National Certification Program. Two-week courses just aren’t going to cut it anymore—not to mention that I never would have been hired to create the curriculum had I not been Nationally Certified. As I said, it just keeps on opening doors.
I believe that education is paramount for all therapists. If we are to achieve the same respect that other health care professions enjoy, we must have a nationally recognized standard form of measurement as a start. It would also make life much easier for all therapists who move from one state to another.
National Certification has certainly made life easier for me!
Kathy Chism, NCTMB, is a licensed massage therapist, massage therapy instructor, and Bach Flower practitioner.

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NCBNEWS

Web Site Linkage
In an effort to better serve the needs of our certificants, the Board of Directors recently approved providing an avenue for direct access from the NCB web site to the web sites of Category A Approved Providers. NCB will provide the links on a trial basis for the next six months. Certificants will be able to click on the web site address of the Category A Provider, and connect directly to that web site. At the end of the trial period, the program will be reviewed and the board will decide whether to continue the service.
NCB staff members have already begun to collect and post the web site addresses from Category A Approved Providers. Those web site addresses will also become part of the Approved Provider and Ethics lists currently printed and distributed at conferences and through the mail.

Board of Directors Hosts Reception in Seattle!
As Cliff Korn mentioned in his Chair’s Letter, the Board of Directors will be hosting a reception for those wishing to come and meet the board. The reception will be held Saturday, October 2, 1999 from 6-8 p.m. at the Mayflower Park Hotel. If you live in the Seattle area, or will be visiting during that time and wish to attend this reception, RSVP to Mary Lou Swiscoski at (703) 610-0281 prior to September 20, 1999.

What ARE They Saying About Us?
Thanks for submitting articles to the NCBTMB office that have appeared in local newspapers and other media about the massage and bodywork profession. Please keep them coming.
The NCBTMB office staff is interested in hearing what is being written about the massage and bodywork profession, and by reading what is actually being reported in the local media, the NCBTMB office can better serve you by making sure your voice is heard. It gives the NCBTMB an opportunity to correct any skewed facts that may be reported, as well as to make sure that your audience knows why you took that extra step to become Nationally Certified.

Massage Chairs
NCBTMB would like to thank Golden Ratio Woodworks for donating two massage chairs to the National Certification Board. Golden Ratio Woodworks supplied us with chairs in our teal and purple colors and with “NCBTMB” embroidered on the seat cushion and head cradle. The chairs have already been put to good use at the National Conference of State Legislatures for on-site seated massage of attendees and they have been used during the corporate massage sessions for NCBTMB staff. The chairs will be used again this fall for some on-site seated massage demonstrations at exhibit venues.

National Massage Therapy Awareness Week
As a Nationally Certified practitioner, here’s an opportunity to show your support for the therapeutic massage and bodywork profession. The week of October 24-30 is National Massage Awareness Week. Educate the public and the media about the benefits of therapeutic massage and bodywork and promote your National Certification status to the public. If you are a member of an AMTA chapter, contact them for specific events planned in your area.
By showcasing this achievement, your commitment as a highly qualified health care professional will be recognized by others. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by! Show the world your professionalism and flaunt your NCTMB credential.

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COMMITTEEUPDATES

Continuing Education Provider Review Panel
Jean Loving, Chair
The members of the Continuing Education Provider Review Panel meet monthly by teleconference to review applications of providers and issues surrounding continuing education. In an effort to continue approving 10-15 new providers every six weeks, the committee is actively discussing the following factors relating to continuing education.
• Basic massage courses being taught for continuing education credits—basic massage courses are covered under initial education and therefore do not count toward continuing education.
• Criteria for home study courses—the committee reviews these courses to ensure that they meet the NCB's definition of continuing education. They also ensure that the course materials are developed and presented to provide comparable education in a home setting as one would receive in a classroom setting.
• Determining that workshops and seminars held in a convention/annual meeting setting are eligible for NCBTMB continuing education credits.
These issues as well as others relating to the NCB's continuing education program will be further addressed at the committee's face to face meeting scheduled for November.
Two new members have joined the panel: Etta Mascarenes, a high school counselor and resource teacher; and Judy Dean, a member of the continuing education and program development staff for the nursing profession. The chair is "thankful for the members of the provider panel and their continued good work. We are proud and happy that Etta and Judy have joined the committee and we look forward to working with them."

Ethics and Standards Committee
Garnet Adair, Chair
The draft Standards of Practice document was presented to the Board of Directors at their May meeting. The document has been sent to a variety of NCBTMB stakeholder groups as an opinion survey.
If you received one of these surveys, please complete it and return it. The committee members need participants' input prior to finalizing the results. "We are quite pleased with our document and see it as instrumental in supporting our Code of Ethics," said Garnet Adair, committee chair.

Recertification Committee
The committee members are planning a face-to-face meeting to be held early fall.
Currently, the committee is reviewing the policies and procedures pertaining to recertification for their accuracy and current applicability.
What is it like to be audited? Look for an article in the next issue of NCB Connection by an NCTMB certificant who has completed the process!

Regulatory/Legislative Committee
Sally Hacking, Chair
Members of the Regulatory/Legislative Committee completed their initial task of researching all the state statutes and rules governing the massage and bodywork profession. The committee members agreed that the national trend regarding minimal educational requirements was important to track, and they plan to keep abreast on how the NCE is recognized in the existing state laws. Sally Hacking, committee chair, reported that of the 29 states that currently regulate the massage and bodywork profession, 22 recognize the NCE, either in their statutes or rules.
The committee members "have worked extremely hard to accomplish a legislative update document," Hacking said. The document was then presented to the NCBTMB Board of Directors, committee chairs, and staff members at the BOD meeting held in May. The report is available at the NCBTMB office as a resource for questions regarding the current use of the NCE in the legislative arena.
According to Hacking, the report served as an invaluable reference tool for the committee members while at the National Conference of State Legislators, held July 24-29, in Indianapolis. "When legislators stopped by the NCBTMB exhibit booth, the most often asked question was, 'How many states regulate the profession, and do they use an exam,' " Hacking said. The document provided detailed answers with completely updated information. "It made a substantial difference in our educational outreach ability," Hacking added.
In addition, the committee members continue to make progress with ongoing legislative research projects. Their next step is to identify the 'title' that each state uses to define massage and bodywork professionals.v

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RECERTIFICATIONCORNER

How do I know when to recertify?
Each certification cycle is valid for four years and your expiration date is printed on your certificate. As a courtesy, the NCBTMB office sends reminder notices to those individuals whose certification is due to expire. One year before your certification expires, you will receive the first reminder notice from the NCBTMB office. Six months prior to the expiration of your certification, you will receive another reminder letter and the application for recertification. Specific requirements on how to recertify can be found in your Requirements for Recertification Handbook.

What do I have to do to meet the recertification requirements?
In order to recertify under the continuing education requirement, a certificant who took the exam after December 31, 1994 will need 50 hours of continuing education. A minimum of 25 hours must come from Category A and a maximum of 25 hours can be claimed under Category B. Although, you may take all 50 hours from Category A Approved Providers. Note: All applicants for recertification are required to take a minimum of two hours in professional ethics during each four-year certification period.

What is the difference between continuing education courses in Category A and Category B?
For a continuing education course to count toward the Category A hour requirement, the provider of that course has completed the approval process required by the NCBTMB. The NCB uses specific criteria to evaluate the providers to ensure that:
• the provider has demonstrated that their course adheres to NCB’s definition of continuing education;
• that they have provided participants with an appropriate learning facility;
• that the content of the material is relevant and appropriate for massage therapists and/or bodyworkers;
• that they maintain private and secure records of their participants; and
• that upon successful completion of the course, a certificate of completion is awarded to each course participant.
Category B credit is granted for continuing education courses that meet the NCB’s definition of continuing education (see definition below) and are offered by providers who are not approved by the NCBTMB. The NCBTMB defines continuing education as:

Learning experiences which enhance and expand the skills, knowledge, and attitudes of practicing massage therapists and bodyworkers to render competent professional services to clients, the profession, and the public.

While it is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that each course for which they claim credit complies with this definition, a good source for accepted education providers is the NCB Category A Approved Provider List. Contact Tawnya Cates, Recertification Coordinator, at (703) 610-0235 for any questions concerning a continuing education course. Failure to follow the established requirements may result in recertification being delayed or denied.

How can I obtain a list of continuing education providers?
Each issue of the NCB Connection contains recently approved providers of continuing education. A complete list of these Category A Approved Providers can be obtained from the NCB’s web site, by Fax-on-Demand, or by calling the office. It is recommended that certificants obtain an updated list at least once per year, as new providers are approved and added every six weeks.
For questions about recertification, or to obtain a recertification handbook or an approved provider list, please contact the NCBTMB recertification office at (703) 610-0235. If you would like the information electronically you can visit the web site at www.ncbtmb.com or call Fax-on-Demand at 1-800-296-0664, option #3.

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New Category A Providers

Arlene Alpert
300 North A1A; Building O-103
Jupiter, FL 33477
(561) 744-4988
Client centered communication
www.arlenealpert.com

The Bohler Institute for Clinical Massage Therapy
1930 Mesquite Avenue, #14
Lake Havasu City, AZ 86403
(520) 855-0779
Various courses

Linda Cunningham
3821 Cape Center Drive
Fayetteville, NC 28304
(910) 223-0698
Various courses

Freedom From Pain Institute
5901 North Ann Arbor Avenue
Oklahoma City, OK 73122
(800) 709-5054
Home study Myoskeletal Alignment Techniques
www.erikdalton.com

A Healing Garden
405 North Third Street, #1
San Jose, CA 95112-7246
(408) 279-0334
Various courses and ethics

Health Options Institute
1410 Main Street
Northampton, PA 18067
(610) 261-0880
Various courses
www.members.aol.com/massage8

The Institute for Burnham Systems Studies
369 Montezuma Avenue, Suite 346
Santa Fe, NM 87501
(505) 989-1807
Various courses
www.burnham–studies.com

Phronie Jackson
3310 22nd Street, NE
Washington, D.C. 20018
(202) 269-0510
Various courses

Koru Seminars
18102 15th Avenue NE, #B205
Shoreline, WA 98155
(206) 769-8158
Lymphatic techniques for rehabilitation

Herbert Levin
640 NE 14th Avenue
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33304
(954) 523-5572
Various courses

Cate Miller
406 North State Road 21
Hawthorne, FL 32640
(352) 475-1258
Various courses

Gwendolyn Mitchell
10911 Martha Drive
Silver Spring, MD 20901
(301) 754-1870
Various Reiki courses

Reflexology Seminars of New York, Inc.
1173A Second Avenue, Suite 264
New York, NY 10021
(212) 517-5532
Reflexology courses

Jonathan Andrew Tripodi
625 Lake Drive, Apt. A
Virginia Beach, VA 23451
(757) 491-0726
Various courses

The Whole You School of Massage and Bodywork
143 Woodview Road
Rutherforton, NC 28139
(828) 287-0955
Advanced massage techniques

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CALENDAROFEVENTS    

August 26-29   
Florida Chiropractic Association    
Orlando, FL

August 29-Sept. 1  
International Spa & Fitness Association   
Tampa, FL

September 15-18
American Academy of Family Physicians   
Orlando, FL

October 1-3   
NCBTMB Board of Director’s Meeting   
Seattle, WA

October 14-16
American Massage Therapy Association
San Antonio, TX

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NCBTMB
8201 Greensboro Drive, Suite 300
McLean, VA 22102
703-610-9015 … 703-610-9005
1-800-296-0664 (totally automated line)
e-mail: mswiscoski@ncbtmb.com