Apr 07
11

Cancellation Policies for massage therapists

2 Comments

One of the biggest challenges in the massage profession seems to be asking to be paid for their time and it shows in how we treat cancellations – last minute, 24 hour, – and no shows.

I was just reading a section in Massage Magazine where they were asking massage therapists what their cancellation policies were and I was quite shocked to see how people try to excuse cancellations. Some people just ignored them, some were just happy to go home early, they give them chances to prove themselves, I give them a lecture was one guys answer. There were a few who were clear and had set fees.

On the other hand an advice column in Massage Therapy Journal was from a clients perspective. The client had missed an appointment because they had gone out of town. They expected the massage therapist to ‘know’ they wouldn’t be there because they were a regular client and had sent all of their friends and family members etc. They felt they were owed something. (While there are some sticky issues in this situation – the massage therapist always calls to remind the person and they didn’t do that and the massage therapist may or may not have clearly explained their cancellation policy) what it does show is that how one massage therapist deals with cancellations affects the profession. We are teaching people how to treat us by not having clear policies and procedures.

How can we expect anyone to respect us if we don’t respect ourselves and ask for it?

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Posted in Ethics Peer Supervision by Julie Onofrio 2 Comments

2 Responses to "Cancellation Policies for massage therapists"

  • Arnold says:
    April 14, 2007 at 5:41 am
    Reply

    I tend to agree. You need to have a VERY specific policy and you need to stick to it at all times. It’s good to have “exceptions” listed in the policy where a miss or last-minute cancellation WON’T result in a charge. But they should be EXTREME EMERGENCY type situations (medical emergency comes to mind) and even then, the clients should only be allowed to miss ONE appointment, TWO at the absolute most. After that, you will just have to explain to them that while you understand their situation, you can’t allow them to keep missing appointments without being charged for the session. They should realize that you are trying to earn a living and when they fail to show up that is “dead time” in your practice where you could have put another client who was desperate to come in and get a massage. I think that’s why my business is all out-call. It’s much harder for people to just “not show up” when you come directly to them. :)

  • Jody Hutchinson says:
    April 12, 2007 at 7:10 am
    Reply

    I have struggled with client cancellations for years. The worst was when I worked in a MD/DC office. Most of the patients were insurance cases and I had about 10-20 % no-shows. The doc’s were reluctant to do anything about it and it’s impossible to charge insurance for no-shows. I fired many of the patients and they would just switch to another therapist. I policed the schedule and that helped sometimes. I finally left and now am on my own.
    After a while I developed, with my superivor’s help, a client policy sheet that clearly spelled out my 24 hour cancellation policy. I stick to this no matter how many feelings come up. I work with my supervisor and this has been very helpful. I tell everyone on the phone about the policy and have much better client compliance. I do make exceptions for work, child care, car troubles, etc. I do charge 100% of my fee for missed/broken appointments. I work hard and I value my time and the relationship with my clients.
    I make it a point to get support, read ethics books, and think well of myself. This has made a huge difference.
    Cheers,
    jh

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