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SIMS Medical Academy
Exploring  patient simulation with the intent of improved patient care.

Massage Therapy and Complementary Care

"Massage has its roots in the far reaches of human history. Rubbing a sore muscle or stroking another person for comfort are natural responses; spiritual and healing traditions have valued touch and the use of hands for healing since the beginning of human memory. The first written records that refer to massage date back more than 4,000 years to China. In ancient Greece, Hypocrites, the father of modern medicine, wrote, “the physician must be experienced in many things, but most assuredly in rubbing.”

Massage comes from both Western and Eastern traditions. Eastern traditions can be traced back to the folk medicine of China and the Ayurvedic medicine of India. Shiatsu, acupressure, reflexology, and many other contemporary techniques have their roots in these sources.

Western traditions date back to ancient Greece and Rome. Modern Western massage owes a great deal to the work of Peter Henrik Ling, a 19th-century educator and athlete from Sweden. His approach, which combined hands-on techniques with active movements, became known as Swedish Massage, perhaps the most common therapeutic massage modality in the West." Visit www.amtamassage.org for more career information.

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Related Fields: Occupational Therapy Assistant | Physical Therapist Assistant | Healing Arts (see program list)

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