With the advancement of the profession of massage therapy, the requirement of its regulation becomes more relevant due to the necessity to standardize and ensure high-quality service provision. It is particularly important to impose legal regulation on the spheres dealing with health services to ensure the protection of the public. In the state of Georgia, the rules and governing laws for massage therapy provide clear and direct guidance on massage therapy practice. In particular, the state regulations establish professional requirements and competencies needed to be an authorized practitioner and the educational and licensure directions.
Under the law, massage therapists in Georgia operate with a specific following of the rules and regulations. According to them, a therapist is obligated to be a licensed practitioner to conduct as an authorized service provider, follow standards of care for the profession, and demonstrate professional competencies and qualifications (Rules and Regulations para. 1). Such regulations indicate a spectrum of responsibilities and obligations that a massage therapist should meet in order to have a right to serve the population within the state healthcare system. Indeed, according to Andraka-Christou et al., the inclusion of massage therapy as one of the services within the scope of pain clinics necessitates its compliance with state laws (13). Overall, massage therapists’ professional conduct is expected to meet the standards of quality care.
When discussing the ways in which rules and regulations protect a therapist, one should note that the professionals are protected from unlawful accuse of maltreatment. Indeed, since the work of massage therapists involves thorough documentation of the services and client work, any legal claims from clients will be accompanied by relevant documentation which is likely to protect a therapist (Rules and Regulations para. 1). Moreover, the inclusion of massage therapy into the insurance programs allows for safeguarding the playability for the services, which might be considered as a protection measure for therapists (Miccio and Cowen 12). Moreover, the protection of clients or patients is one of the pivotal concerns addressed by the rules and regulations. In particular, the responsibilities of a massage therapist under the law include a detailed list of specific measures to avoid violations of regulations and malpractice (Rules and Regulations para. 1-2). Therapists are encouraged to establish effective therapeutic relationships with clients to recognize and immediately address their concerns in a non-harmful way. Moreover, the entering of massage practice in the legal domain allows clients to file grievances in case of any violation.
Finally, the rules and regulations of massage therapy in Georgia define the scope of practice as the provision of services to clients with the aim of pain management and prevention of physical impairment (Rules and Regulations para. 3). In such a manner, massage therapists obtain a clear identification of the limits of their responsibilities, which helps them perform their services in a client-centered manner. In general, the definition of the scope of practice of a particular specialist allows for establishing the boundaries between the responsibilities of cooperating specialists facilitating the functioning of the legal provisions.
In conclusion, the rules and regulations applicable to massage therapy practice in Georgia provide a clear spectrum of guidelines for proper conduct. The responsibilities and duties of therapists who must be licensed to perform their work in Georgia are properly articulated with specific regard to therapists’ protection. The public served by massage therapists obtains healthcare, financial, and legal protection under regulations, which allows for adequate regulation of this field of practice.
Works Cited
Andraka-Christou, Barbara, et al. “Pain Clinic Definitions in the Medical Literature and US State Laws: An Integrative Systematic Review and Comparison.”Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy, vol. 13, no. 1, 2018), pp. 13-17. Google Scholar.
Miccio, Robin S., and Virginia S. Cowen. “A Regional Analysis of US Insurance Reimbursement Guidelines for Massage Therapy.”International Journal of Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork, vol. 11, no. 1, 2018), pp. 11-16. Pubmed.
Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia. “Chapter 345-6 Professional And Unprofessional Conduct.”