Massage Therapy Foundation Student Case Report Contest
The Massage Therapy Foundation is delighted to invite you to participate in our Student Case Report Contest. This contest fosters an opportunity for students to develop research skills by conducting their own research case report in which they will summarize their results in the format of a professional research paper. Top-rated reports will receive recognition in the way of publication opportunities and cash rewards. This educational event also provides research acclaim for the host schools. Please see the Foundation’s Mission and Goals at www.massagetherapyfoundation.org.
Reports must be submitted online through www.massagetherapyfoundation.org by March 1, 2012
Students must report on independent clinical interventions on one client with guidance from a Case Report Supervisor and/or a Clinic Supervisor. This includes doing a literature review on the presenting condition or client goal; creating and implementing a treatment plan in accordance with the literature, the needs of the client, and the students’ expertise; writing up the results; discussing the implications of the outcomes; and offering suggestions for future study. Because a case report is on one client only we will not accept a case series on multiple clients. Submissions of this type will not be scored by the reviewers.
SCHOOL AND SUPERVISOR ROLES
Participating massage therapy programs and their student supervisors play a crucial role in the success of this contest. In order for the student to successfully participate, the school must commit to:
• Provide a supervised clinical component as part of the school’s program, in compliance with local jurisdictional requirements.
• Provide a case report supervisor for each student entering the competition; this person may or may not be the student’s clinical supervisor.
• Promote the competition within the school.
• Create an in-house process for selecting the best three case reports produced by the school’s students. Each school can submit a maximum of three case reports to the Foundation’s case report contest review committee. The student authors of the reports must give the school permission to submit their work to the Foundation contest.
Faculty members assisting students participating in the scholarly contest may be involved in one of two roles, or may fulfill both simultaneously:
1. Clinical Supervisor (CS): This role involves collaborative management of the case with the student in accordance with generally accepted standards of practice. This function, being a standard component of the student’s clinical
education, is related yet distinct from the case report contest. If the CS is not performing the role of case report supervisor, he or she must verify to the CRS that the student’s report is an accurate reflection of the student’s clinical experience with the client.
2. Case Report Supervisor (CRS): This role involves acting as a guide and resource as the student researches and writes the case report. Note that the report must be the student’s work, and that in providing support and direction the CRS should not unduly influence the work. The CRS must sign off on the final report, attesting to its being the work of the student and an accurate representation of the student’s activities in meeting the contest’s requirements.
Logistics of the case report
• Students must conduct a minimum of five (5) massage therapy sessions with the participating client.
• It is highly recommended that massage therapy be the only new intervention in the client’s treatment plan.
• Patient confidentiality and the security of health information must be maintained. No personal identification of the student or client may be included in the report.
Student Case Report Contest Awards
Grand Prize “Gold” Award
♦ $2,500.00 cash prize for the gold award winner contingent upon the winner undergoing the peer review process for the International Journal of Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (IJTMB) or another peer reviewed scholarly journal by the appropriate deadline.*
♦ Up to $1,000.00 stipend each for the student winner and the faculty Case Report Supervisor to travel to the 2012 AMTA National Convention and present the findings.
♦ Invitation to submit a poster for the 2012 AMTA National Convention Poster Session.
♦ Local and national press releases announcing the award.
♦ Two personal keepsake gold plaques, one for the winning student and one for the school.
Second Place “Silver” Award
♦ $2,000.00 cash prize for the silver award winner contingent upon the winner undergoing the peer review process for the International Journal of Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (IJTMB) or another peer reviewed scholarly journal by the appropriate deadline.*
♦ Invitation to submit a poster for the 2012 AMTA National Convention Poster Session.
♦ Local and national press releases announcing the award.
♦ Two personal keepsake silver plaques, one for the winning student and one for the school.
Third Place “Bronze” Award
♦ $1,500.00 cash prize for the bronze award winner contingent upon the winner undergoing the peer review process for the International Journal of Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (IJTMB) or another peer reviewed scholarly journal by the appropriate deadline.*
♦ Invitation to submit a poster for the 2012 AMTA National Convention Poster Session.
♦ Local and national press releases announcing the award.
♦ Two personal keepsake bronze plaques, one for the winning student and one for the school.
Honorable Mention/s
♦ Links to the school website from the Foundation website, if the school has posted the case report.
♦ Local and national press releases announcing the award.
♦ Two personal keepsake certificates, one for the winning student and one for the school.
* Awards will be announced by June 2012. Student winners will have until February 28th, 2013 to complete the peer review process with a scholarly journal
For questions regarding the Student Case Report Contest please contact Alison Pittas at apittas@massagetherapyfoundation.org or 847-905-1667. and redeem their cash prize. Please note that
