With a mission to “protect the public,” this state agency “is responsible for assuring the appropriate conduct and proper education of all practicing professional massage therapists operating in the state.”
The board establishes education and examination requirements for practitioners, issues licenses to them, and creates rules for license renewals and continuing education. An additional duty is to set standards for schools concerning accreditation, curriculum content, administrators and instructors, facilities and equipment, sanitation, and student-to-teacher ratios.
The board investigates and holds hearings regarding allegations of illegal or unethical conduct. Disciplinary actions include license suspensions and revocations.
The five members of the board are appointed by the governor, with approval from the state Senate. Three of the officials must be licensed massage therapists, one is an osteopathic physician or chiropractor, and one is a lay person.
Minimum Education Requirements for Massage Therapy Programs in West Virginia
To become a massage therapist in West Virginia, completing a high school education or earning a general education diploma is the initial step. College-prep classes in science and health are beneficial.
Students need to attend a massage school that the state board has approved. The program must feature 500 or more content hours of supervised instruction, with the following components:
- 200 hours in the theory and practice of massage and bodywork therapy (including 100 hours of hands-on application plus instruction in client assessment skills, indications and contraindications, body mechanics, draping, hygiene, infectious diseases, and massage history)
- 100 hours in anatomy and physiology (including pathologies)
- 15 hours in ethics, laws, and rules
- 15 hours in business practices
- 20 hours in dynamics of therapist/client relationships, communication skills, and boundary functions
- Another 150 hours can involve relaxation and clinical massage techniques, specific applications, spa treatments, adjunctive modalities, in-depth anatomy and physiology, kinesiology, or movement education.
Time spent in a student clinic or fieldwork assignment may not exceed 100 hours. Certificate programs are allowed to take at least six months to complete, and daily instructional hours are limited to eight. A 16:1 or better student-to-instructor ratio is required in hands-on practice classes.
Earning a certificate or degree entitles a student to apply to the state board for a license to practice in West Virginia. One licensure prerequisite is registering with the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards to take a national certification test called the Massage and Bodywork Licensing Examination.
Practicing LMTs must earn license renewals every second year. The board calls for 24 credits of continuing education, including at least three hours in ethics.