On Jan. 23, the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB) announced the launch of a new service, the Regulatory Education and Competence Hub (REACH), available at reach4ce.org.
REACH is an online education center that offers continuing education courses that support required learning to sustain therapist competence and desired professional development, as well as directed learning to support state regulatory requirements and disciplinary actions.
The REACH online courses consist of interactive multimedia presentations with integrated assessments. Courses are reviewed by a panel of industry experts to assure content accuracy and relevancy. The first course to be offered is Cultural Competence: Bias which addresses implicit and explicit bias, the impact of bias on others, and the effect of bias within the massage and bodywork profession in the United States.
“REACH was developed as a way to provide additional educational resources to massage and bodywork therapy professionals and assist state massage boards,” said Debra Persinger, PhD, executive director for FSMTB. “All CE courses meet FSMTB Continuing Education Standards, which were created by expert representatives from regulatory boards.”
Course completion results for licensed massage therapists will automatically load into FSMTB’s Massage Therapy Licensing Database (MTLD). MTLD provides a comprehensive view of massage and bodywork therapists regulated in the United States to facilitate the role of public protection among state licensing boards/agencies and to support licensure portability.
REACH CE courses can also support multiple professions, not just massage and bodywork therapists. Subject areas, tailored to state-specific regulations, include cultural competence, ethics, human diversity awareness, laws, rules and other courses requested by state member boards.
About FSMTB
Established in 2005, the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB) is an autonomous, 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization comprised of state regulatory boards and agencies that regulate the massage therapy profession. All revenue collected by the organization is used to enhance FSMTB programs, maintain and improve the quality of the Massage & Bodywork Licensing Examination (MBLEx) and provide support to FSMTB Member Boards in fulfilling their responsibility of protecting the public. For more information, please visit fsmtb.org.