Media Release: HPI - Separating the Wheat from the Chaff in Massage Therapy
Confusion continues to surround the distinction between professional massage therapy and massage services provided by poorly qualified or unqualified workers, including sex workers. This ongoing conflation undermines public confidence, poses risks to healthcare consumers, and creates reputational and operational risks for legitimate massage therapy healthcare providers.
Separating the wheat from the chaff is essential to the proper development and integration of professional massage therapists within Australia’s healthcare system. Unfortunately, inconsistent State and Federal legislation continues to blur the distinctions around scope of practice, professional accountability, and consumer safeguards.
On the one hand professional massage therapists are covered by the Health Professionals Award and are subject to prosecution under the National Code of Conduct for Health Workers if they engage in sexual conduct with a patient or client. In contrast, sex workers may advertise 'massage' or 'remedial massage' services and are not subject to the same professional or disciplinary frameworks – even in cases involving inappropriate conduct or the offering of sexual services. This regulatory inconsistency exposes healthcare consumers of massage therapy to risk and erodes trust in legitimate massage therapy services.
The review of the Healthcare Identifiers Act 2010 presents an important opportunity to address these issues and brings longstanding concerns into sharper focus.
Amendments to Clause 9A of the Act, effective from 1 November 2025, expand the classes of individual and organisational healthcare providers eligible for a Healthcare Identifier (HI).
The first tranche of amendments restricts eligibility for a Healthcare Provider Identifier–Individual (HPI-I) to practitioners holding AQF Level 7 qualifications. This enables degree-qualified professional massage therapists to apply for assessment through the Healthcare Identifiers Service. These changes may enable GPs, allied health practitioners, and healthcare consumers to identify professional massage therapists more readily and better understand the clinical services they provide.
This will also begin the process of improving data collection around professional massage therapy and enhance awareness among registered health practitioners of the therapeutic effects of remedial massage therapy and myotherapy. Improved understanding is likely to support better clinical decision-making and reduce the risk of contraindications.
However, the majority of professional massage therapists hold AQF Level 6 (Advanced Diploma) or AQF Level 5 (Diploma) qualifications. These practitioners will fall under the new Healthcare Provider Directory–Organisation (HSP-O) framework, which includes AQF 5 and 6 qualified providers. Forecast consultations on these changes is critical if risks posed by rogue, poorly skilled, or inadequately trained practitioners are to be reduced and public safety enhanced.
While the reforms to the HI system acknowledge the essential role of HSP-O professional massage therapists in healthcare and facilitate their entry into digital health, key details remain unresolved. The scope of information accessible to HSP-O providers, as well as the data that professional massage therapists may contribute to digital health records, has yet to be defined.
Importantly, AQF 5 and AQF 6 qualifications are fit for purpose and intentionally designed to support remedial massage therapy and myotherapy. Practitioners who meet rigorous professional standards and hold the ACCC-approved Certified Practitioner® credential warrant serious consideration for exceptional inclusion in the Healthcare Identifiers system. The Certified Practitioner® Program incorporates robust quality assurance measures, strict association membership requirements, and governance standards comparable to AHPRA registration, including continuing professional development, criminal history checks, and regular audits.
Qualified professional massage therapists already operate in multidisciplinary healthcare settings such as GP clinics, aged care facilities, cancer centres, sports medicine practices, and multi-modality healthcare clinics such as physiotherapy and osteopathy clinics. They routinely refer patients to other health professionals. Survey data indicates that 84% of GPs consider massage therapy to be effective and safe, with many regularly referring patients to professional massage therapists.
Inclusion in the HI and health data ecosystem represents a logical and necessary progression for professional massage therapists, and begins the process of keeping pace with the professional development of the sector.