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CMTO

As a part of the College of Massage Therapists of Ontario’s (CMTO’s) commitment to regulatory modernization, in 2019, the College undertook a multi-year project to update its Standards of Practice.

Standards of Practice play a key role in healthcare regulation and public protection by setting the requirements and expectations for all Registered Massage Therapists (RMTs/MTs) across Ontario. Standards of Practice are crucial to the safe and effective delivery and provision of Massage Therapy care.

Updating the Standards involved a review of the existing Standards, legislation, policies, guidelines, investigations and discipline data, and standards from similar organizations across Canada and internationally. The CMTO also gathered feedback from RMTs, the public and other stakeholders. Through extensive research and with the feedback gathered, CMTO was able to develop the new Standards of Practice. CMTO’s Council has approved January 1st, 2022, as the implementation date for the new Standards of Practice (2022).

About the Standards of Practice (2022)

The CMTO’s new Standards of Practice establish expectations and outline the requirements for all Registered Massage Therapists (RMTs/MTs) regardless of their role, job description, or practice setting. The new Standards apply to all practice settings, and are:

• Client-centric and include a client outcome statement that will help clients understand what to expect from their MT/RMT.
• Outcomes-based and aim to provide the fewest requirements possible while still upholding client safety.
• Applicable across all practice settings, regardless of the practice environment.
• Designed to offer flexibility and RMTs may apply the Standards in a way that is most suitable for their practice, as long as they first meet all the minimum requirements outlined in each Standard.
• Linked to STRiVE, the Quality Assurance Program, and are closely associated with the 15
  Career-Span Competencies.

This video provides a brief overview of why and how the changes in the Standards of Practice were developed.

How Did the CMTO Develop the New Standards of Practice (2022)?

In the initial stages of the project, the CMTO established a Standards of Practice Advisory Group (SPAG), comprised of RMTs from across the province with varying experience and backgrounds. The SPAG provided input into the development of the new Standards throughout the project, made suggestions and recommendations on proposed content and wording, and offered solutions to resolve issues that were identified during development.

Then, in 2020, CMTO sought feedback from RMTs, the public, educators, the Registered Massage Therapists’ Association of Ontario and others by circulating an online survey, along with the proposed draft Standards of Practice. 1,624 respondents completed the survey.
The key highlights from the survey included:

• CMTO’s registrants represented the largest group of survey respondents (93%) of the total, and 10% of all CMTO registrants participated.
• The second highest group represented was members of the public/clients with 63 respondents or 4% of the total number of respondents.
•  The other types of respondents combined represented 3% of the total number of respondents and included educators (who were not RMTs), Massage Therapy students/ candidates, other healthcare professionals and employers.

The majority of survey participants indicated that the draft Standards were clear, easy to understand, and were possible to implement across a broad range of practice settings. If you’re interested in learning more about the development process, you can read the Final Report: The Standards of Practice Revision Project.

What Happens Next?

The existing Standards of Practice will be rescinded and replaced by the new Standards of Practice (2022).

While the new Standards will not significantly change how RMTs deliver Massage Therapy treatment, RMTs are encouraged to begin reviewing the new Standards (2022), to understand the new requirements and consider how to implement them into their practice as of January 1, 2022.

The CMTO has published information about the new Standards of Practice (2022) on its website. Throughout the coming months, CMTO will continue to provide guidance and resources about the new Standards to RMTs by email, Twitter, TouchPoint articles and on their website.

If you’d like more information on the upcoming changes, please visit CMTO’s website or reach out to their Practice Specialist at practicespecialist@cmto.com.

Tags: cmto, standards of practice