What does a clinical massage therapist do?
Clinical massage therapist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real clinical massage therapist resumes:
- Manage confidential client health information in accordance with the HIPPA act.
- Provide care to chiropractic patients with specific condition treatments.
- Schedule appointments, maintain records and accounts, and answer telephone calls to refer inquiries to providers for patients.
- Maintain professionalism and cleanliness of assign therapy room and maintain the confidentiality and sensitivity to relate issues during all client interactions.
- Perform massage therapy and Reiki on palliative care patients
Clinical massage therapist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 23% of Clinical Massage Therapists are proficient in Front Desk, Patients, and Client Confidentiality. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Empathy, and Integrity.
We break down the percentage of Clinical Massage Therapists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Front Desk, 23%
Massage Therapy, Office CA/front desk Insurance billing /posting.
- Patients, 19%
Performed Clinical Therapeutic Massage to help rehabilitate patients involved in Motor Vehicle Accidents.
- Client Confidentiality, 11%
Maintain client records as required by law while insuring client confidentiality.
- Physical Therapy, 9%
Coordinated with physicians as liaison of American Physical therapy
- Soft Tissue, 8%
Developed and utilized therapeutic techniques to solve patient's soft tissue injuries.
- Pain Relief, 3%
Provided therapeutic massage for clients needing pain relief and muscular therapies after injury or accident.
Common skills that a clinical massage therapist uses to do their job include "front desk," "patients," and "client confidentiality." You can find details on the most important clinical massage therapist responsibilities below.
Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a clinical massage therapist to have is communication skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "massage therapists must listen carefully and convey information clearly in order to ensure that clients achieve desired results through massage sessions." Clinical massage therapists often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "massage developed and maintained a faithful clientele base through good work ethic and proper communication. "
Empathy. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling clinical massage therapist duties is empathy. The role rewards competence in this skill because "massage therapists often treat clients who are in pain." According to a clinical massage therapist resume, here's how clinical massage therapists can utilize empathy in their job responsibilities: "full understanding of chiropractic manual massage. "
Integrity. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of clinical massage therapists is integrity. This skill is critical to many everyday clinical massage therapist duties, as "massage therapists often have access to clients’ medical histories and other privacy information." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "provide therapeutic and relaxation massage administer body wraps and treatment maintain open and friendly atmosphere uphold state license ethical standards"
Physical strength and dexterity. clinical massage therapist responsibilities often require "physical strength and dexterity." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "massage therapists must be strong and able to exert pressure through a variety of movements when manipulating a client’s muscles." This resume example shows what clinical massage therapists do with physical strength and dexterity on a typical day: "performed 50 and 100 minute swedish, deep tissue, and shiatsu massages on the public. "
Time-management skills. Another crucial skill for a clinical massage therapist to carry out their responsibilities is "time-management skills." A big part of what clinical massage therapists relies on this skill, since "massage therapists must be effective in using the time allocated for appointments to help each client accomplish his or her goals." How this skill relates to clinical massage therapist duties can be seen in an example from a clinical massage therapist resume snippet: "completed all necessary administrative and business development activities to open retha, lmt on time. "
The three companies that hire the most clinical massage therapists are:
- Massage Envy9 clinical massage therapists jobs
- Brigham and Women's Hospital1 clinical massage therapists jobs
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Compare different clinical massage therapists
Clinical massage therapist vs. Masseuse
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between clinical massage therapists and masseuse. For instance, clinical massage therapist responsibilities require skills such as "front desk," "patients," "client confidentiality," and "appointment scheduling." Whereas a masseuse is skilled in "scheduling appointments," "relaxation massage," "client service," and "sexual abuse." This is part of what separates the two careers.
The education levels that masseuses earn slightly differ from clinical massage therapists. In particular, masseuses are 2.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a clinical massage therapist. Additionally, they're 1.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Clinical massage therapist vs. Masseur
Each career also uses different skills, according to real clinical massage therapist resumes. While clinical massage therapist responsibilities can utilize skills like "front desk," "patients," "client confidentiality," and "soft tissue," masseurs use skills like "human body," "market trends," "purchase orders," and "late arrivals."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Masseurs tend to reach higher levels of education than clinical massage therapists. In fact, they're 6.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Clinical massage therapist vs. Reiki master
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, clinical massage therapists are more likely to have skills like "patients," "client confidentiality," "physical therapy," and "soft tissue." But a reiki master is more likely to have skills like "yoga," "relaxation techniques," "crystals," and "stress reduction."
Most reiki masters achieve a higher degree level compared to clinical massage therapists. For example, they're 21.5% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.4% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Clinical massage therapist vs. Bodywork therapist
Types of clinical massage therapist
Updated January 8, 2025
