CCRI Prepares Students For Massage Research Project

Massage Research is still in it's infancy. To standardize a research project has many challenges when it's main component is a hands-on technique. The students in the C.C.R.I. Therapeutic Massage program are learning all of these obstacles and finding the courage to overcome them in their course: Foundation of Evidence Based Outcomes in Therapeutic Massage.

Students, also, create their own research project. From hypothesis, to performing hands on techniques, to outcome, to presentation, they have to do it all. Our own intern, Cassie Ruggien, is creating just one of these research projects right here at Body-WiseTherapeutics.

Her Hypothesis? "Does Therapeutic Massage Decrease Pain in Clients with Chronic Back Pain?" She will be performing a routine one hour massage on each client, using the same techniqes and spending the same amount of time on each body part. Twenty minutes will be spend on the back and neck. Clients will fill out health history form as well as information on a pain scale. Post treatment, they will fill out a survey and again report in on pain scale.

She will then take all the data and prepare a presentation for faculty and local massage therapists. This is often the first presentation a student makes. I've been present for many of these student talks and, I know, it takes courage (and they find this with lots of support from teachers and intern supervisors) not only to complete the project but to get up and present the date and come up with a conclusion!!