TRI teaches spa-massage therapists

When a client comes to you with cancer, multiple sclerosis or any medical condition, you want to be confident that your hands are enhancing, not hampering, the healing process.

A new program at Willow Stream The Spas at Fairmont, a chain of seven hotel spas that employs more than 200 massage therapists, in conjunction with the Touch Research Institutes (TRI) at the University of Miami School of Medicine, aims to ensure that Willow Stream’s massage therapists are informed of the effects their hands may have on a variety of conditions.

“In our ongoing discussions with our massage therapists it came to our attention that they were uncomfortable providing treatments to our guests who were receiving cancer treatments or who had serious illnesses, as they didn’t want to harm anyone by doing anything wrong,” says Anne McCall Wilson, general manager of Fairmont Spas, Inc. “We knew that massage therapy was beneficial for guests with serious illnesses or undergoing treatments, but we weren’t sure how to continue the education our therapists receive on how to assist these guests.”

After years of reading the studies—more than 90 of them—conducted by TRI on massage for conditions such as cancer, fibromyalgia, asthma, HIV, diabetes and other diseases, Fairmont Spas approached TRI Director Tiffany Field, Ph.D., about developing a massage-therapy education program.

“We had read her research and were thrilled when we met with her and she expressed her eagerness in helping us help our therapists,” says McCall Wilson.

The first of Fairmont’s education sessions with Field and TRI was set to be held in late summer 2005, past this publication’s deadline. The session was to consist of a 90-minute live, interactive videoconference with Field and all massage therapists and other interested employees of Willow Stream, about the results of research on massage therapy for a wide range of diseases and conditions.

After the videoconference, “Each spa will then continue with a practice session and discussion facilitated by their lead trainers,” says McCall Wilson. “We will also be taping sessions so we can continue to educate new therapists as they join our team.”

The TRI sessions are one component of the Willow Stream Energy Masters Program, launched in April 2005 at Willow Stream’s North American locations and expected to roll out to other Willow Stream locations in 2006. The program is open to the spas’ massage therapists, aestheticians and salon technicians, allowing them to earn the title of “Willow Stream Energy Master” after acquiring 250 credits in courses that cover massage-therapy research, spa-product knowledge and session protocol and performance.

Willow Stream The Spas at Fairmont are located in Acapulco, Mexico; Alberta, Canada; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Victoria, British Columbia; Scottsdale, Arizona; Southampton, Bermuda; and Aventura, Florida.

—Brandi Schlossberg