Massage & Myotherapy Australia is launching a renewed community wide education campaign to redress the confusion and conflation of qualified professional massage therapists and sex workers.
Ann Davey CEO, said in the wake of sex work decriminalisation and legalisation in many states, and advertising rules that allow sex work to be advertised as legitimate health related massage therapy, we are hoping the campaign will re-educate the community about the differences.
'For some of our member therapists sexual harassment from clients demanding sexual services occurs daily, with many leaving the sector in disappointment about the attitude of some members of the public towards massage therapists.
Mrs Davey said, 'It is clear from their experiences that we need to address the confusion and misunderstanding in the community and try to protect qualified massage therapists who work in the health and wellbeing sector from the high levels of sexual harassment that are occurring in their workplace.
'Importantly, the campaign is not about disregarding the human rights of sex workers or passing judgement on sex workers, but even if sexual gratification has some therapeutic benefits, it is not remedial massage therapy or myotherapy provided by professional qualified therapists who work in the health or wellbeing sectors.'
'We hope the campaign will help to educate the community about how to find professional qualified therapists and the benefits of remedial massage therapy and myotherapy,' Mrs Davey said.
Mrs Davey said, 'Unfortunately access to professional qualified remedial massage therapists and myotherapists is confused and inequitable across Federal and State policies adding to the misunderstanding about these services and their benefits.'
The Massage & Myotherapy 2023 Practitioners' Survey of its 8600 members highlighted a significant and growing demand for qualified therapists to work with clients who have complex and/or multiple health conditions.
Integration within the wider health sector is growing with sources of clients and funding coming from the registered health sector such as GP referrals and some government-based insurance schemes. This helps to support those who depend on remedial massage therapy and myotherapy to maintain function, reduce pain and stress brought on by injury, overuse, chronic conditions, and ageing. However, access is inconsistent and inequitable for those who cannot afford to be self-funded.
The campaign will be delivered predominantly through social media reels and Google search advertising, supported by hyperlinks to the Australian Massage Directory which provides the contact and massage treatment details for over 8500 qualified therapists located around the country.
The campaign is supported by a research-based 'Knowledge Centre' for GPs and other registered health practitioners, and various information pages and fact sheets for the community that include assistance in identifying qualified professional massage therapists and myotherapists.
Mrs Davey said, 'As an association with limited funding by members, the campaign can only focus on providing information for people who are searching for services from qualified remedial massage therapists or myotherapists.'
'However, we hope that the educational benefits will spill over into the wider community, and those who are seeking the services of sex workers, by helping them to distinguish the differences and not assume that all massage therapists are potential sex workers,' Mrs Davey said.
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