R - Return to Practice
Face of the future?
We will need to rethink many aspects of our practice…
SPS Sports Massage Students/Graduates Return to ‘Practice of Skills’ Post Covid_19
At the moment there is No practice of skills outside of your family unit and only then if they have remained in isolation have no symptoms (no contraindications) and you have also stayed home and not had any contacts outside of your household. If you are a practitioner/therapist then massage/soft tissue skills or beauty therapy is not deemed an essential intervention at this time.
This situation of your family unit only, is now unlikely as lock down has eased in England and people have ventured further afield and had ‘social distanced’ contact with others outside of the household.
It is therefore not possible at this time to ‘practice skills’ for your diploma course(s). SPS has given an extension of 6 months to the two year registration, without incurring additional cost. Those who were outside the two year period at the point of lockdown can pay the additional administrative fee and extend for a further 12 months if desired. If you are studying with other providers you must check with them before returning to practice your skills. Remember that to be safe you must have insurance and follow the guidelines.
I have had extensive conversations with the insurers via our broker Graybrook Hallam regarding the way forward and will communicate any changes to the practice of skills, documentation and any other factors such as PPE as soon as there is clarity.
In the meantime DO NOT practice until ‘hands-on’ therapies are allowed under government guidelines to return to work and SPS has communicated to our students/graduates ‘how’ in practice we will proceed to ensure that you remain insured, safe and can maintain ‘client/model’ safety. Please also bear in mind that changes to government policy may be country based England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. This may result, as at this moment in different legal requirements. For example Wales is still with the Stay at Home message or Stay Local (5 miles) unless there is an essential journey required beyond this distance. Whereas England is now easing restrictions and has the ‘Stay Alert’ message.
If you are in any doubt about what you need to do at any stage please get in touch with us or your course provider. However, I will update everyone as guidelines and information becomes available.
The regulated professions have been communicating extensively and there are groups such as “Covid 19 - Physio & Therapist Support Group” which are doing fantastic work collaborating on systems, processes and paperwork. It is clear however that all of the Face to Face taking place is after video/telephone or online triage and the situation deemed ‘urgent’ to warrant F2F. This is not massage and the lengths they have to go to currently to ensure their own health and safety as well as the clients is extensive.
You will need full risk assessment, protocol and PPE before any interactions with clients/patients can take place. Do not underestimate what is required in returning to practice!
Please stay safe and well and don’t put yourself, family or others at unnecessary risk during this period. Covid_19 may have become less prevalent but it is still no less deadly and we do not yet have a vaccine