The following is a recap report of the 2015 AMTA National Convention House of Delegates Meeting that was held in Pittsburgh, PA in August.
Recommendation: Indiana Chapter - Human Trafficking
Therefore be it resolved, that the House of Delegates recommend to the National Board of Directors that a work group or operations committee be established to research and recommend a plan that the American Massage Therapy Association can use to develop support material and create a guide for working with Homeland Security, the Human Trafficking Task Force, and other organizations working on human trafficking.
Discussion and debate on this Recommendation was very emotional on the floor. The majority of the Delegates speaking on the Floor were in support (PRO) for passing this Recommendation. Our MA Delegates, Regine Ryder and Kate Peck were in line to speak on the PRO side, however, time ran out, and Regine made a motion to extend debate, which was not approved.
HOD Vote Results: This Recommendation PASSED, with a majority vote. This Recommendation will now go to the National Board of Directors for review and action.
Recommendation: Wisconsin Chapter - Online CEs
Therefore be it resolved that the House of Delegates recommends that the National Board of Directors offer complimentary online CE for members.
While there was much discussion on the floor for both the PRO and CON of this Recommendation. MA Delegates, Cynthia Sykes, Nichole Cross and Regine Ryder all spoke in support of this Recommendation, based on our MA Chapter Member Survey results. One of the CON arguments was that “free education” would devalue the educational experience for presenters, who are trying to provide quality education.
HOD Vote Results: This Recommendation DID NOT PASS, as it did not have a majority vote.
Recommendation: Wisconsin Chapter - Media Education Kit
Therefore be it resolved that the House of Delegates recommends to the National Board of Directors that the Board commission the creation of a model journalist/media education kit for chapter use.
This Recommendation had a lively Floor discussion. On the CON discussion side, some Delegates spoke that they did not feel it was appropriate for National AMTA to spend money and resources to create this kit. MA Delegates, Gail Dobinski and Regine Ryder, spoke in favor (PRO) of this Recommendation, stating that it would be a valuable tool for all Chapters and Massage Therapists to have a timely and universal response to any negative media references of massage.
HOD Vote Results: This Recommendation PASSED with an overwhelming majority, and will now go before the National Board of Directors for review and action.
Position Statement: Massage for Burn Scars
It is the the position of the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA) that massage therapy may assist in the rehabilitation of burn scars.
The discussion on the floor had equal debate on the PRO and CON side. This was the third submission for this Position Statement. Again, the debate from the Delegates speaking on the floor (PRO and CON) surrounded around the fact that even though massage is beneficial for burn scars, there still is not enough research for the AMTA to make this endorsement. MA Delegate, Kate Peck spoke on the CON side of this Position Statement, indicating that the wording was weak; specifically “may” versus “can” assist in the rehabilitation and would like to wait to see more research so that the AMTA can make a strong endorsement.
HOD Vote Results: A ⅔ majority vote was needed to pass this Position Statement. Although the majority voted in favor of this Position Statement, it did not meet ⅔ majority vote required to pass, and therefore, this position statement DID NOT PASS.
Position Statement: Portability
It is the position of the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA) that regulations, in statute and/or rules, should provide options for portability of credentials, which can be used to help meet the licensing, certification, or registration requirements of massage therapists across the United States.
This was the second pass at this Position Statement. The discussion and debate on the floor this year was more focused on it being a statement of endorsement as opposed to an actual action plan for Portability. MA Delegate Nichole Cross spoke on the CON side of the debate stating that she felt that this should be a Recommendation first, leading into a Position Statement.
HOD Vote Results: This PS easily PASSED with the required ⅔ majority vote.
Head Delegate, Kate Peck, was very pleased with the overall preparation and participation of our MA Chapter Delegates, before and during the 2015 AMTA House of Delegates Meeting.
The final business of the House of Delegates was the HODOC Elections. Fellow New Englanders, Jennifer Findley (VT), Laura Stevenson-Flom (CT), as well as Donna Webb (NY), and Roxanne Young (HI) were voted into the HODOC.
Respectfully Submitted on August 22, 2015.
AMTA-MA Delegates: Kate Peck, Gail Dobinski, Nichole Cross, Regine Ryder, Cynthia Sykes
AMTA-MA Alt Delegate: Kimberly Griffith