Thanks to all who responded to our AMTA-MA Chapter education survey. We had a little over a 10% response from our membership, and we will base 2018-2019 planning upon your responses! Below is a summary of the survey question and answers.
Location:
Members live throughout the state, with most living closest to Boston, Metrowest or Worcester. Overwhelmingly, members responded that they prefer education events to be in Framingham, with Burlington, Hyannis and Worcester area as alternative choices.
Communications:
Members prefer us to contact them about Chapter education events via email, specific to an event, vs. a newsletter.
Course Length and Scheduling:
70% of responding members prefer 1-day courses, on either Saturdays or Sundays. Some members prefer Fridays or Mondays, as alternative days. Also, a majority of members responded they would most likely attend no more than two education event in a year.
When asked for reasons why members have not attended events within the past three years. The top answer was that the location was inconvenient. Other reasons included cost being prohibitive or lack of interest in courses offered.
Course Pricing and Course Subject:
For a 1-Day course, members are willing to pay between $100-$150. This was split evenly across responses. For 2-day courses, members are willing to pay $200-$250.
There is great interest in attending courses specific to conditions seen in clinical context (ie. massage for low back pain or fibromyalgia). Other courses scoring high for member interest include myofascial release, lymphatic drainage, active assisted stretching, CranioSacral Therapy and NeuroMuscular Therapy.
Overall, members consider LOCATION, CE-Hours and COST to be top factors that inform their decision whether or not to attend a MA-Chapter education event.
Cadaver class:
Members are interested in taking a 4-6 hour cadaver class if organized and are willing to pay more for it. However, a majority of them are only willing to drive within 25-50 miles to attend this course.
Other types of Chapter sponsored events:
Members are interested in local ‘meet-up’ type events covering topics such as business ownership, ethics discussions, CPR training, study groups and happy hour networking. Saturday or Sunday afternoons would work well for these shorter gatherings or week-day evenings.
Summary:
The Board met and reviewed the survey responses as well as individual comments. We are excited to streamline our event offerings, bring in some new courses and educators, as well as try some ‘meet-up’ grass roots events. Thank you to the many business owners that offered their business offices for us to gather!
As always, we remain open to your feedback. The best way to integrate changes that you wish to see in your organization is to get involved! If you are interested in volunteering, please reach out to membership@massamta.org or complete the form on our website.
Presented by Katie Adams, Board Member