Paper Example on Sports Massage Profession

Children and Vulnerable Adults

The children and vulnerable adults are among the special groups that seek sports massage therapy. Thus they require attention unique from the general population due to their delicate nature. Hence, when working with them, they should be provided with the necessary facilitation to help them meet their goals during the therapy. Also, there are violation such as ethical and legal as part of the implication for handling them (Beider, Mahrer, & Gold, 2007). The reason for this situation is because the children and vulnerable adults have compromised capacity to advocate for their needs or take actions aligned to their interests. Therefore, in sports massage just as the other areas in their life their handlers have to show special consideration by providing an environment that enables them to meet their goal. There are various situations such as daily physical activities that expose these groups to various forms of injuries such as aches and pains. The massage therapists help them to relive or learn to manage these problems and more. Working with these groups requires trained personnel who can devote time and show patience while taking them through a variety of either controlled or regulated activities suitable for them. The trainers in these activities have to be approved by relevant bodies as qualified personnel to handle these groups. Employees dealing with these groups if found guilty by misconducting themselves, they will be barred and risk further punishment if found trying to practice sports message at any capacity. For this reason, they are required to be professional and observe legal and ethical provisions guiding their field. When dealing with children, it is important for an adult to supervise the activities not only for security but also for understanding the nature and reasons for activities.

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Informed Consent

Informed consent refers to the acknowledgment of possible consequences from an activity or a procedure. In sports massage, the therapist has to inform the client what activities and why they would be doing them. The clients have to show they acknowledge what they will be part of and could stop any time they wish. The right to informed consent and refusal ensure that whenever a client feels uncomfortable about an exercise, he/she can stop until they are ready to continue. In this context children and vulnerable adults cannot be relied upon make sound judgment and decisions, and responsible adult has to help them or make an informed consent on their behalf (Committee on Bioethics, 1995). The informed consent should address the benefits and risk or particular activities and show the clients the definitive techniques that shall be used and safety standards.

Consequences of Non-compliance

The field of sports massage is guided by professional ethics which are legally binding to the service providers. The ethical provisions such as allowing patients autonomy, non-maleficence, and informed consent for the patients among other guides the services delivery of providers in this field. This situation means that the professionals who do not comply with the guideline streamlining their practice are culpable for punishment stipulated for various violation. The penalties could include fines and be barred from practicing massage therapy by stripping away the licensee by relevant legal and professional entities.

The Scope of Practice

The scope of sports massage is described by the processes, actions, and procedures that a massage therapist apply to provide services to the clients as required by the professional guidelines. In sports massage, the scope could be used to reflect on various mechanisms used to deliver the therapy in the sports massage activities. The following image will reveal the various kinds of techniques used by therapists to deliver their services to clients.

Fig 1: Showing the scope of sports massage.

The above diagram reveals the various mechanism that massage therapy could be used to address various cases presented by clients. The physiological mechanism is used to improve the functioning of the body organs and tissues through techniques such as inducing skin and muscle blood flow, by raising the temperatures in these regions. Also, relaxation and circulation techniques are used to improve the functioning of organs. Moreover, the manipulation of body hormones and stress management techniques are used as therapy to improve the functioning of tissues and organs. Hormones such as serotonin and cortisol are linked to back pains, depression, and anxiety (Kennedy, Cambron, Sharpe, Travillian, & Saunders, 2016). However, studies have revealed that dance therapy can control hormonal activity and lower the symptoms of these conditions. The second technique is biomechanical which works by applying mechanical pressure on the body tissues. The skills used in this technique include muscle compliance, range motions, passive and active stiffness. The range motions refer to static flexibility which is applied to a series of joints with a problem. The massage exercise can be used to increase the joint motions and relive the tension. This stiffness reduction techniques are used to to increase mobilization of the in the tissues, massage one of the skills used to contribute to this therapy. The third is neurological effect which is administered through reflect stimulation. Techniques used under this category include parasympathetic activity which is administered through massage to target cases of blood pressure and heart rate. The second is neuromuscular excitability and H-Reflex. Studies have revealed massage as a useful technique used to reduce neuromuscular excitability, by decreasing the tension in muscles and stimulating the sensory receptors. Also, massage has been used to reduce the perceptions of pain in athletes, cancer and recurrent head patients among other cases. Moreover, the biochemical substances targeting the neurotransmitters have been shown to be effective in reducing the symptoms of pain. Some of these chemicals include serotonin whose levels can be increased through massage therapy. The massage also increases dopamine levels which relieve stress. The fourth technique in the sports massage scope is the one target the psychological effects by improving the body-mind coordination. This technique aim to improve relaxation, reduce anxiety, and raise the perception of recovery. Despite massage studies shown that it could only lead to short-term relieve of stress and anxiety it could often be usedoften to improve the quality of life. Massage also leads to a relaxation effect. Moreover, studies have revealed that patients suffering from various conditions revealed enhanced perception on their recovery after a massage session. Final technique is the immunological which relies on the modulation of the immune elements. When massage therapy is applied, it leads to an improvement of peripheral neutrophils level, lymphocytes, and immunoglobulin A. also leads to a decline in the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines.

Standards Relevant to the Profession

The standards guiding the provision of services to the in the sports massage profession is client-centered; thus all require to seek to the benefit of enhancing the user experience. The standards seek to provide safe and consistent services and advocating for the rights of both the clients and therapist. These standards also inform the public of what to expect from the therapist and detecting danger in case it occurs during the process of therapy. For this reason, the scope of sports massage streamlines the standards of service provision. The following pie chart will show the eight standards of practice that guides the sports massage area.

Fig 3: showing the sports massage professional practice (Salvo, 2015)

The above eight standards ensure that the therapist works within the ethical and legal provisions of the professional to maximize their skill on the patient's problem and improve their chances of recovery. The first one is about the conduct of the practitioner to ensure he/she works with the clients according to the work ethics. The second is sanitation, safety, and hygiene where the practitioner has to create a working environment that upholds these requirements as guided professionally while dealing with the client (Salvo, 2015). The third is professional relationships with clients while interacting with clients by focusing on confidentiality and respect among other issues. Fourth is on the relationship with other professionals which is supposed to be professional and beneficial to the client, for instance, making referrals that will benefit the patient. Fifth, appropriate recording keeping where the professional keeps clients record in case it is needed for references such as referral and payment. Sixth is marketing the services which should be accurate and honest as part of the ethical consideration. Seventh is a legal practice, where the providers are required to conform to national, state, and local authorities guiding their practice. Finally, research to improve the quality of practice but should be accomplished within ethical limits.

Principles of Professional Practice and Standard Regulations

The sports massage field is guided by five major principles that guide the relationships between the provider and client.

Fig 3: The above spider diagram representing the principles of professional practice in sports massage (Beck, 2012).

The first focuses on the respecting the dignity of the person by respecting their belief, values, and priorities during the therapy. Second is accountability and responsibility for the provider not only to the clients but also to the profession. The third is quality of practice where the therapist has to use competent skills, with compassion, which is safe for the client (Beck, 2012). Fourth is trust and confidentiality that should be established between the patient and the providers. Finally, in collaboration with others in multidisciplinary teams to help the client.

References

Beck, M. F. (2012). Theory and practice of therapeutic massage. Cengage Learning.

Beider, S., Mahrer, N. E., & Gold, J. I. (2007). Pediatric massage therapy: an overview for clinicians. Pediatric Clinics of North America, 54(6), 1025-1041.

Committee on Bioethics. (1995). Informed consent, parental permission, and assent in pediatric practice. Pediatrics, 95(2), 314-317.

Kennedy, A. B., Cambron, J. A., Sharpe, P. A., Travillian, R. S., & Saunders, R. P. (2016). Process for massage therapy practice and essential assessment. Journal of bodywork and movement therapies, 20(3), 484-496.

Salvo, S. G. (2015). Massage Therapy-E-Book: Principles and Practice. Elsevier Health Sciences.