I originally wrote this in response to a Twitter conversation and a question posted by the STO, I only had one response to it so I'd be interested to hear what people on here have to say.
State of Sports Therapy.
My comments have to be taken with the caveat that I do not work in the UK and haven't done so for ten years. I can only comment on what I see on the Internet and from the few interactions I have in the UK at conferences, events etc.
My initial reaction is that the term sports therapy has been superseded in sports circles by that of soft tissue therapist. The recent job advertised by GB Bobsleigh for example required somebody with skills in injury management, taping/strapping and manual therapy, all which I would consider the remit of Sports Therapy, but it was advertised as Soft Tissue Therapy. The fact that masseurs also advertise as Soft Tissue Therapists dilutes and confuses the titles. This isn't new really, the distinction between Sports and MSK Physio Therapy is also very blurry.
The way I see it working is that you have doctors, physiotherapists and soft tissue therapists making up a medical team, the concept of sports therapy does not really fit in. I would back this with what I saw from presentations at the recent European College of Sports Physicians conference and with my experience at the Paralympic Games. A lot of the people I worked with there providing massage considered themselves to be sports therapists and had a wider skill set than 'just' massage. The fact that massage was included in the Polyclinic was good, the fact that the skills of people were overlooked in favour of their titles not so good. I realise at this was an international affair and every country has a different system so it was always going to oversimplified like that. However the fact remains that a Physio who specialises in respiratory care was considered higher in the system than myself who deals with musculoskeletal problems in pro sport every day and has experience in rugby at a very high standard, (European challenge cup, Top 14, Pro D2).
The recent STO advert for people to work with Rugby League Officials is excellent but I couldn't help notice the company that is running it (and I met the lady at the STO conference) don't themselves actually advertise any Sports Therapy services.
I can see a model emerging in sports medical teams and it is up to us to decide how and where we want to fit in then make it happen: Doctor - Physio - Soft Tissue Therapist.
This is an important discussion and one which I have talked on and written about many times over the last 2 years. I will try to summarise my thoughts. There are three powerful strands of therapy within the sports injury market--Sports Massage, Sports Therapy, Sports Rehabilitation. The professional associations representing these therapies fight hard to raise their profile and their members' profiles---they are often in competition with each other, operating in the same space and fighting for the same jobs. I will utter blasphemy here and say that these three therapies have more similarities than differences, and that we would be much more effective if we operated under one banner i.e one umbrella term to describe the three therapies (Soft Tissue Therapist) and---------one association to represent them---even if it was on a 'federal' basis rather than a complete merger. This doesn't mean that a therapist would not be able to use the title they think would benefit them most, but it does recognise that the current situation causes confusion.
The splintered representation of the industry and the refusal of some to countenance cooperation, and change, will hamper our ability to be recognised. We are fighting for space and recognition with enormous statutory regulated professions e.g. Physiotherapists with one PA serving 51,000 members charging £300 per year. The fact that we make any headway at all given the limited resources at our disposal is a miracle.
I am not overclaiming when I say that I played a key role in bringing Sports Massage to the Olympics, but we had to make sacrifices to be accepted and that meant doing less than many of us were trained to do---but boy oh boy has it been worth it! We also recruited many Sports Therapists and Sports Rehabiltators who were prepared to put professional pride to one side and act as Sports Massage Therapists for the duration of the Games. To gain profile you sometimes have to make sacrifices and if that means acting well within your scope of practice so be it---it allowed the Soft Tissue Profession a big foot in the door--we can show our other skills once we have the trust and confidence of the powers that be. At least we are now being invited to the party.
Some of us (PAs) have started to cooperate through direct communication and industry bodies and we are starting to challenge the status quo and 'small thinking'.
I think we can achieve so much more by cooperating intelligently under the banner of Soft Tissue Therapy rather than continuing with the current divisive model, and I know that many forward thinkers in the industry have similar views.
Paul. Chair The SMA
Hi Dai,
we are all in effect, Soft Tissue Therapists, whether we are Sports Therapists, Chiros, Physios, Rehabbers etc and as Paul has stated, we have been discussing this for quite some time.
We are always going to have to go with whatever the industry or commerce dictates, whether it be sports therapist, soft tissue therapist or the like, however, as long as we are all working within our own remits, I do not have a problem with that.
I think a lot of emphasis is placed on roles in sport, but when you have decades of history, we cant just change it overnight, all we can do is keep plugging away.
As you know I run a training company, and if I thought that my students would not be able to make a great career out of doing my courses, then I would stop. Unfortunately if someone wants to go straight into elite sport, then it isnt going to happen and I would tell them that. Most of my grads are making a good living treating private clients, and those wanting to work in sport, usually find their niche. We also have quite a few of our grads working full time in sport, however, I find that the majority of my grads just dont want that. They want flexibility and good earning potential, which you just dont get in full time sport.
The process of recognition is always going to be a slow one, but opportunities are out there, whether they be for sports massage, soft tissue or sports therapy, we just need to make sure they are available for our members to at least apply for.
As Paul said, an overarching PA would be useful in at least lobbying for greater recognition and maybe creating more clarity in the industry, whether or not it will happen remains to be seen. STO are more than willing to work with other PAs to create this.
It's sad to hear that soft tissue therapists had their complete skillset disregarded in such a manner at the games. It feels like we are being pushed into an area that physiotherapy has left behind, namely manual therapy. This leaves them to get on with the other area's that sports therapists/sports massage therapists/soft tissue therapists are equally able to fulfill.
I certainly feel that many of the courses for the above titles cross over massively, so much so that a person could choose to use any of the above, as a title! The lines have become very blurred indeed.
I agree that there needs to be one voice for what ever we eventually want to call ourselves but there are PA's who won't budge. Obviously one in particular is the Society of Sports Therapists who I've just read have been invited to present at the British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine this year. They are making inroads with the likes of the FA and RFU and will continue to argue that sports therapists should be graduates.
Don't know about you guys but I'm very very tired of all this nonsense and losing patience rapidly! There always seems to be a question mark looming over something. Its an absolute joke and a completely farcical situation.
The main problem with the sports massage/therapy/soft tissue industry, as the old saying goes 'Too many chiefs' who basically can't agree on anything! It just goes around and around in circles. Highly annoying. Rant over.:mad: