Articles

Body and Soul - Touching Human Needs

by Judith McKinnon, from SKIN Magazine, June 1998

With the next millennium just around the corner, professionals in the ever- growing service industries are poised to offer exactly what people will never stop needing — human contact. According to “The Healing Power of Touch,” published in the August 1997 issue of LIFE Magazine, “Some 25 million Americans make 60 million visits to 85,000 practitioners each year. Those numbers don't include employees of the growing number of institutions — including the U.S. Department of Justice—that offer massage in the workplace, or the children of the 10,000 parents who learn baby massage each year.”

In the same article it was stated that, “After the Oklahoma City bombing, volunteer therapists gave massages to exhausted rescue workers, numbed survivors and over worked pathologists. The state medical examiner observed that the massage therapists were accomplishing more in 15 minutes than psychologists could in an hour or two.”

To add to the belief in the need for human contact, Massage Magazine recently reported that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM)'s director Wayne Jonas announced the possible consideration of discussing the effectiveness of massage at its January/February 1998 meeting. OAM has set the stage for evaluating the effectiveness of massage as an intervention that can complement the intensive care required by premature or drug-exposed infants.

Such reports only help prove that there is a growing movement toward acceptance and acknowledgment of the power in touch and complementary medicines. In the 1970s, there was little understanding of the value that these practices had to offer. However, pioneers began to lead the way by taking graduates of various programs to conferences, health fairs and seminars offering massage in chairs, over clothes, in public view—wherever they thought it would be accepted. This process gave favorable publicity to massage while providing experience for the growing number of practitioners.

Creating an impact

A mere ten minutes of massage can create quite an impact. Results aren't measured in the number of minutes, but rather in the quality of the touch, coupled with the skills used in educating the client so this person receives the most benefit from the work. Be cause countless individuals have shared what transpires for them when they receive massage, more and more salon and spa owners have been inspired to bring massage into their workplaces and into their lives.

In service industries — including salons, spas and clinics — there is a constant need to build the client base. This can be done, in part, by adding new services to the treatment menu. However, promoting new services is not always an easy task. Keep a log of client comments and feedback about their treatment experiences. Once you begin to feel that you have contributed to people's lives, you naturally will become more motivated to promote your business to a higher level of success.

Target a segment of the population to promote the new services. Perhaps you enjoy working with the elderly. If working with this group gives you great satisfaction, make arrangements to offer services at a retirement or nursing facility on a monthly basis. The connections you make with these clients can create job fulfillment while at the same time expanding your referral base. The opportunity to provide loving contact never can be underestimated. It may be a client's only opportunity for personal, nurturing contact.

The innate need for touch continually is being addressed in this industry. There is no such thing as simply doing an herbal wrap, a facial or a massage. Every positive touch affirms the whole person — body, mind and spirit. Research has shown that in serving others, we too are served. The University of Miami Medical School's Touch Therapy Research Institute, under the guidance of Tiffany Fields, Ph.D., has studied the efficacy of touch for nearly a decade. During this period, volunteer grandmothers were recruited to administer infant massage. The effect on the infants, as well as the grandmothers, was unexpected. The research states, “Grandparent volunteers were assessed after giving infants massage versus receiving massages themselves. Preliminary results are: 1) they reported less anxiety, fewer depressive symptoms and an improved mood after giving infants massage; 2) their pulse decreased; and 3) they reported improved self-esteem and a better lifestyle (fewer doctor visits and more social contacts) after the one- month period. These effects were stronger for providing infants massages than receiving massages themselves.”

This research only confirms that when this work is administered with love, it is “good medicine” for all concerned.

Complementary services

Every job has its ups and downs, and there are times when work is more pleasurable than others. This simply means it is time to start taking a look at some new ideas, and to identify new growth opportunities. Start by looking at the seasonal aspect of your work. The holidays are a busy time in any salon or spa. To balance out this cycle, offer massage specials after the New Year. Those suffering from post-holiday colds, flu or seasonal depression would benefit from massage services. In fact, endorphins are released in the course of massage that can help lift the mood.

Utilize aromatherapy and retail aromatherapy products. Take-home products will help trigger pleasant memories of a treatment or in-salon experience, plus allow clients to benefit from a treatment long after leaving the salon.

A tremendous number of businesses are bringing in on-site practitioners, however, few salons are following this trend. On-site massage is done over clothes in a custom-made chair and therefore could be performed in a semiprivate surrounding. A station for this easily could be facilitated into virtually any salon or spa. Many clients probably would jump at the chance to receive a 15-minute stress break.

Find ways to choose more environmentally friendly products that help promote health as well as beauty. This leads to a healthier work environment, and also opens doors to a broader client base.

Changing roles

Alliances also can be made with local health care practices. Survey your clients: would they partake in the services of a chiropractor or acupuncturist, if available at your salon or spa? In our changing models of health care, beauty and wellness, there are concerned physicians who are looking to become a part of a vibrant model within a full service facility. As massage practitioners and skin care providers, we are not able to diagnose or prescribe, however we can provide a solid foundation to assist clients in staying well and showing their wellness through beauty. It might be worth your time to find physicians, practitioners or advocates of complementary medicine and develop a wellness community through networking.

It is estimated that one-third of the American population combined spends $15 billion annually for nontraditional complementary health care in the United States. Most of that money comes out of the consumers' pockets, because complementary care, for the most part, is not covered by insurance companies or HMOs. However, the industry is seeing a very exciting trend — a southern California-based insurance company is offering financial relief with an acupuncture health plan. American Specialty Health Plans recently won the first state license for an acupuncture health maintenance organization. By early 1998, American Specialty's plan will cover at least 1.5 million Californians. Treatments will be provided through a network of 600 acupuncturists.

“We wanted to build a plan the HMOs will want, and to help take acupuncture into the 21st century,” says George DeVries, chief executive officer for American Specialty Health Plans. With this development and a recent NIH news release concluding that acupuncture is an effective treatment for a variety of conditions, the stage has been further set for a deeper acceptance of complementary health care.

The big picture

When our work serves our spirit, we transmit a deeper experience to our clients. With the combined efforts mentioned, there is a fabulous opportunity to gain greater visibility and status for a new health care and beauty model. Your time is well spent when you can find and identify yourself within this larger context of the emerging field of holistic health care.

Reprinted from Skin Inc., June 1998

SKIN Inc