#RaiseTheRMTBar #UpTheRMTGame 

The primary goal of Massage Therapy is to provide the highest quality of health care and achieve the best outcomes for the clients in a cost-effective manner. The care process involves assessment, massage therapy assessment, identification of client-centered goals (outcomes), selection of effective therapeutic interventions, and evaluation of progress. To make sound decisions throughout this process, massage therapists require valid information.

Our profession recognizes evidence-based practice (EBP) as a means to improve the quality of healthcare services massage therapists provide. EBP provides a link between the best available evidence and clinical practice.

Evidence-based practice in massage therapy means utilizing the best diagnostic and assessment tools, carrying out the most effective treatment, giving the best prognosis possible for the outcome of treatment, and being knowledgeable about etiological factors for health promotion and secondary prevention.

EBP requires that decisions about health care are based on the best available, current, valid, and relevant evidence. These decisions should be made by those receiving care, informed by the tacit and explicit knowledge of those providing care, within the context of available resources.

All massage therapists need to understand the principles of EBP, recognizing it in action, implementing evidence-based policies, and having a critical attitude to their own practice and to evidence are skills needed to provide 'best practice'.

All massage therapists need to understand the fundamental legal/ethical principles of serving the public interest through Empowerment of Patient Autonomy in the Informed Consent decision-making process.

The teaching of EBP should, as far as possible, be integrated into the clinical setting and routine care of patients so that students not only learn the principles and skills of EBP, also learn how to incorporate these skills into their own life-long learning and patient care.

We the undersigned ask that each RMT professional body and organization:

1) Adopt a Policy statement on evidence-based practice in massage therapy that is congruent with other health care professions' definitions and the Sicily statement on EBP in health care.

2) Commit to integrating evidence-based practice education into our entry to practice competencies

3) Commit to creating infrastructure and tools that assist educators and practitioners in integrating EBP into curriculum and practice

4) Development of effective and well‐resourced research capacity in the profession.

Dawe et al: Sicily statement on evidence-based practice. BMC Medical Education 2005, 5:1  http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6920/5/1

Nunan D, Lindblad A, Widyahening IS, et al
Ten papers for teachers of evidence-based medicine and health care: Sicily workshop 2019
BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine 2021;26:224-227.
https://ebm.bmj.com/content/26/5/224.abstract