Who Are We?
• We are a philanthropic institution [501(c)(3)]
that advances the knowledge and practice
of massage therapy by supporting scientific
research, education and community service
• Our Vision: The practice of massage
therapy is evidence-informed and
accessible to everyone.
Should We Collaborate?
Do MTF Goals align with S4OM Needs?
1. Advance research on therapeutic massage and bodywork.
2. Foster massage therapy initiatives that serve populations in need.
3. Promote research literacy and capacity in the profession.
4. Support the evidence-informed practice of therapeutic massage and bodywork based upon available research, client factors, and practitioner experience and judgment.
5. Fortify the Foundation’s financial resources and organizational effectiveness.
Working Together
Here are some fantastic ways to get involved with the
Foundation:
• Donate-when you give to us, you give to the profession
• Sponsor-whether you choose to sponsor an event or a
seminar, know that you are committing to building a better
industry
• Volunteer-we can not do it without the many individuals
who so kindly donate their time
• International Journal of Therapeutic Massage &
Bodywork-get your ad featured in one of the only peer-
reviewed online journals for massage therapists
Tools We Use (Programs)
• Community Service
Grants
• Case Report Contest
• IJTMB.org
• Research Posters
• Research Conference
• eBooks
• Research Literacy
Courses
• Research Grants
• Research Perch
• Research Agenda
Collaboration opportunities!!
2013 Community Service Grant Recipients
• HIV Comprehensive Wellness • Donna Pine-Kimil; Gay Men's Health Crisis, New York, NY
• Infant Massage for At-Risk Families • Nath Chad; Grinnell Regional Medical Center, Grinnell, IA
• Grief Massage at The Respite: Comfort for Life Transition and Loss • Aimee Taylor; The Respite, A Center for Grief and Hope, Charlotte,
NC (Sponsored in part by a donation from Biotone)
• Massage Therapy in Pediatric Palliative Care • Dr. Jeffrey Gold; Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
(Sponsored in part by a donation from Biotone)
2013 Case Report Contest Award Recipients
Students
• Gold Award Winner
• Jennifer Nielsen - Chronic
Hyperventilator with Irritable Bowel
syndrome
• Silver Award Winner
• Morag Wehrle - Professional
Violinist
• Bronze Award Winner
• Linda Ching – Piriformis Syndrome
• Honorable Mention
• Meghan Reid - Spinal Cord Injury
Practitioners
• Gold Award Winner
• Angela Burke - Stress
Reduction in Children with
Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Silver Award Winner
• Laura Allen - Chronic Low
Back Pain
• Honorable Mention
• Rosi Goldsmith - Parkinson’s
Disease
International Journal of Therapeutic
Massage and Bodywork (IJTMB.org)
• Scientifically-based articles of a research, educational, and practice-oriented nature
• Indexed in PubMed
• Began in 2008
Editors • Antony Porcino, PhD
• Karen Boulanger, PhD
• Albert Moraska, PhD
• Niki Munk, PhD
• Whitney Lowe
• Glenn Hymel, PhD
Research Posters/Conferences
• Involvement with MTF
through submitting
posters or having
platform presentations
• AMTA National
• International Massage
Therapy Research
Conference
2013 Research Grant Recipient
“The Effect of Massage Therapy on Cancer
Related Fatigue in Breast Cancer Survivors”
Paulette Swanson, PT, DPT, MS, cert. MDT Middlesex Hospital Cancer Center, Middletown, CT
Samueli Institute- Systematic Review
• Samueli Institute is a non-profit research organization supporting the scientific exploration of healing processes and their role in medicine, with the mission of transforming health care worldwide.
• Current review • Massage therapy for pain
• Future reviews • Massage therapy for
cancer pain
• Massage therapy for
surgical pain
Research Agenda
1. Build a research infrastructure within the massage
therapy profession.
• Encourage development of a research literate massage therapy
profession.
• Work with stakeholders to establish research as a core competency
in the professional education of massage therapists.
• Fund the education of massage therapy researchers.
• Foster collaborations, create pathways and establish linkages that
encourage interactions of massage therapists with physicians,
clinical and experimental researchers, and social scientists.
Research Agenda
2. Fund research into the safety and efficacy of
massage therapy.
• Begin by funding studies that compare the relative effectiveness of
different massage modalities for a given condition
• Then fund studies that compare the optimum massage therapy for
a given condition with other standard methods of care (medical,
chiropractic, acupuncture, etc.).
Research Agenda
3. Fund studies of physiological (or other)
mechanisms by which massage therapy achieves
its effects.
4. Fund studies stemming from a wellness paradigm.
• Document what “wellness” means to stakeholders.
• Establish the dimensions of the effects of massage therapy on
“self‐healing.”
• Align these studies with the study of physiological mechanisms
above.
• Explore the interaction of consciousness, wellness and the actual
practice of massage therapists.
Research Agenda
• 5. Fund studies of the profession of therapeutic
massage.
• Fund studies that determine what makes a “good” or “great”
massage therapist.
• Document how massage therapists are perceived by themselves
and others.
• Evaluate the client assessment skills of massage therapists.
• Explore the dimensions of the therapeutic encounter.