Looking to the Future

As I was re-organizing the textbook and resources we keep in our library, I came across more study tips and tricks from another reputable author Kevin Patton.  From Mosby publishing came Patton's book "Student Survival Guide for Anatomy & Physiology" 1998, and it surprised me how relevant the information still is to our current and prospective students.

On the inside cover of this little 58 page paper back it says:
"Student Survival Tips for Anatomy and Physiology
1. Have a winning attitude
2. Know your learning style
3. Plan a learning strategy
4. Arrange a suitable study area
5. Plan a reading strategy
6. Analyze your note-taking skills
7. Study actively
8. Use all your resources
9. Prepare for tests
10. Use a test-taking strategy"

So, no matter what education you are taking, these 10 steps can drastically improve the likely-hood you will succeed greatly in your study and test-taking.  Students of all ages, nationalities, and personal preferences should take time to look at their education in view of these steps and consider what they can do better in order to achieve the highest goal possible.

I suggest to any students looking into or already attending Massage Therapy classes to stop by the Saskatoon Campus over the summer to take a look at this book; come, make time to create your educational strategy for the 2011-2012 academic year.

Social Media and Its Impact on Massage Therapy

What is Social Media? Well, if you are reading this, you're experiencing it right now: the world of the web and all the facets of communication it offers. The standing question in my mind and in the mind of many Health Care Professionals is "How does social media impact my practice?" and "How can I use it for my benefit?" and "What are the downsides to social media; where do I draw the line?" All very good and pertinent questions.

Places like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, and the various blogging sites available have taken the concept of word-of-mouth and expanded the surface area covered ten-fold. This makes advertising and certain types of marketing simple and affordable if you take the time it may take. It seems that a business that does not have a website may struggle as the next generation becomes their clientele; a generation saturated with on-line presence.

Getting back to the meat of the topic: how do you think social media will impact your business? Will it enhance your productivity or be a weight? How can you position or transition your career to keep up with the expectations of an on-line market

A Brief View of the Year

This has been a very exciting year at PIMT Saskatoon.  We would like to highlight some of the amazing occurrences we've been fortunate to experience this year:

1. This year we are pleased to announce the commencement of our Disabled Student's Equality Program
• This program was created to ensure that each student has an equal opportunity to succeed in the career they choose
• Students who struggle with learning, physical, or psychological disabilities are given the chance to make the most of their education, without being belittled, pushed aside, or forgotten
• We have purposed to create a program that will assist these students in using their strengths in studying, note taking, and examinations while not compromising our evaluation standards
2. As always, we have given our students the opportunity to get out into the community and practice their training through "outreaches" - a supervised time of massage practical and learning
• We started the year working with the Canada Revenue Agency's appreciation day; the students of our first year class had the opportunity to perform relaxation massage for an afternoon
• One of our favourite outreaches is at the University of Saskatchewan's Student "Stress-Less" day; our first year class had the opportunity to work on the students through the most stressful time of year: EXAMS
• We are currently in the midst of an outreach with the MS Society; our senior class is giving over a number of clinical hours specifically volunteering massage treatments for members of the Society (Thank you Cassie for all your help organizing)
• As we look toward the rest of the year, we are looking forward to working with the AIDS Society and the Saskatoon Yellow Jackets
3. We have also had the opportunity to attend a number of career fairs in high schools across Saskatchewan
• In Saskatoon, we visited a number of high schools (including Aden Bowman Collegiate Institute)
• We traveled to Swift Current, Melfort, and Tisdale (to name a few)
4. We are currently working on have a new Part-Time Relaxation Certificate Program approved
• This program would be 250 hours and would certify graduates to work as Relaxation Therapists or Spa Clinicians
• We are currently waiting on approval through the Ministry of Education

In addition to the Institute specific, we have also been a part of the larger picture for Massage Therapy in Saskatchewan:

1. Working alongside the Massage Therapy Association of Saskatchewan and the other Massage Therapy institutes in Saskatchewan to assist the furtherance of the Massage Therapy profession as it pertains to national competencies
• We have been given the opportunity to see and be apart of the action that will hopefully bring legislation to the profession of Massage Therapy - making it a primary health care modality and being recognized as a regulated profession
2. Attending workshops with the Student Financial Assistance Branch of the Ministry of Advanced Education, Employment, and Immigration - discussing the new initiatives they are putting in place to aid students in their educational endeavours
• Our campus is up-to-date on all information that pertains to financial aid for students in Saskatchewan and are supporting the positive changes SFA has instated for students
3. Spending time with the Saskatchewan Association of Career Colleges, who are tirelessly working toward the betterment of Private Vocational Education in this province
• We are impressed at the willingness of an association to strive for excellence, not only in themselves, but in the Institutes they represent

We have had such an amazing year so far. There is no end to the positive accomplishments and opportunities that we - and others associated with Massage Therapy - can create and/or acquire in this field.

Student Retention, Employment, and Pass Rates

We have recently received statistics from The Ministry of Advanced Education (AE) and The Massage Therapist Association of Saskatchewan (MTAS) concerning our student's retention, employment, and pass rates.

According to AEEI, we have a retention rate averaged at 90% and a graduate employment rate averaged at 91% from 2006 to 2012 (the 2013 statistics are not available yet).

The MTAS board exam is one of the challenges we mission to prepare our students for each year; this exam not only allows them membership with MTAS, but gives them recognition with the Massage Therapist Association of Canada and access to many continuing education opportunities throughout their career.  The following are the graduate pass rates for the written and practical exams for the 2006 - 2009 years (2010 rates are not yet available):

                         2006                   2007                     2008                 2009
Written               95%                    83%                      86%                  89%
Practical             89%                    77%                      93%                  89%

Our graduates also average at 88% who master the written exam and 87% who master the practical exam.

We are proud to say that our curriculum has prepared and is preparing our students for successful careers in Massage Therapy as alumni of the Professional Institute of Massage Therapy.

RMT Job Opportunity

Registered Massage Therapists in or moving to Lloydminster, AB:

The ad is also posted on the bulletin board at the Institute for PIMT Alumni.