About us

About the Association of Massage Therapists in Healthcare

Mission

The mission of the Association of Massage Therapists in Healthcare is to support healthcare-based massage therapists in their work through education, networking, compassion, and collaborative outreach to the greater healthcare field.

In carrying out this mission, AMTiHC shall:

  • Support standards in massage therapy for the best interest of practitioners, patients, caregivers, and other healthcare providers
  • Promote education to enhance safe and effective care for massage therapy patients and encourage provider professional development
  • Develop opportunities for mentorship
  • Provide a networking community
  • Support healthcare organizations to develop a massage therapy service line

Board of Directors

Karen Armstrong, Director

Karen Armstrong, L.M.T., BCTMB

President

Karen Armstrong is the Manager of Integrative Medicine at Beaumont Health and since 2007, has been serving as the Manager of Clinical Massage and Program Director of Beaumont’s Oncology and Hospital Massage Class in Michigan.  Ms. Armstrong oversees operations of three hospital-based Integrative Medicine clinics.  Modalities offered in these clinics include acupuncture, clinical massage, functional medicine, naturopathic medicine, yoga, reiki, integrative dietetics, and several educational programs.

Ms. Armstrong initiated numerous research projects and co-authored multiple published manuscripts.  She is a former Society for Oncology Massage (S4OM) board member, former Chairperson of Michigan’s Board of Massage Therapy, a past president of the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards and serves on many educational Advisory Boards.   Ms. Armstrong is an adjunct instructor at the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine teaching both medical students and residents about integrative medicine. Ms. Armstrong promotes the benefits of integrative medicine to hospital and medical administration, faculty, the community, students, and patients. She frequently presents at community and hospital events.

Erika R. Slocum

Erika R. Slocum, LMT

VP/Secretary

Erika Slocum has been a massage therapist since 2005. She was trained in Cambridge, MA at the Muscular Therapy Institute. 

She was trained in oncology massage therapy and has been working with this population since 2007. She is an oncology massage educator with Tracy Walton & Associates and has worked all over the country providing intensive workshops in this field. 

From 2009-2020 Erika owned a private practice in Somerville, MA that employed 7 massage therapists and enjoyed a bustling practice until the COVID-19 pandemic forced her practice to close. She and her team served thousands of clients with a variety of health concerns and musculoskeletal issues. 

Erika pursued her interests in integrating massage therapy into healthcare by learning and working at the Boston Medical Center. This became the springboard for new opportunities. Since 2018 she has been working for the Zakim Center for Integrative Therapies and Healthy Living at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. This outpatient clinic is doing groundbreaking work in providing an interdisciplinary approach to treating the whole patient while they are undergoing cancer treatment and during their recovery journey. 

Erika’s extensive network of other therapists and clinicians has kept her in touch with the challenges in the field. She has channeled her passion about massage therapy education by serving on the Education Committee at the Society for Oncology Massage. That work allows her to steer and hone oncology massage education. 

“I’m thrilled to be a part of this Association and team of committed individuals who want to support massage therapists in healthcare. I’m convinced that as massage becomes less adjunctive and more mainstream, we will be on the front lines of patient care.”

Ed D. Bolden

Ed D. Bolden-Greer

Director At Large

Ed is the founder and President of Arbor College- School of Massage in Knoxville, Tennessee.  Having had a thriving massage practice for 20 years, which included teaching continuing education nationally, he retired from his private practice to focus on serving the needs of the school and the regulatory community.  He comes from a varied healthcare and healthcare education background, having served as a Cardiopulmonary Critical Care Nurse, a Nursing Home Administrator, a Nursing Program Coordinator, and a Director of Massage Education. He holds a graduate degree in Life Science and a post-graduate degree in Naprapathy. With over 28-years of experience in healthcare, of which the last twenty years have been devoted to the field of massage and massage education.

Ed has served in several capacities on the State and National platform in the massage therapy profession.  He was appointed in 2011 and continues to serve as a member of the Tennessee Massage Licensure Board.  He served as a commissioner for the Commission on Massage Therapy Accreditation (COMTA). He has held leadership positions supporting the work of the regulatory community nationally and chairing many committees and task forces for the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB). Ed was appointed to the FSMTB Board of Directors in 2015 and served as the President from 2016-2018.

Carolyn Tague, Director

Carolyn Tague, MA, CMT

Director At Large

Carolyn Tague has been a licensed massage therapist since 2005 and has been doing massage therapy in hospitals since 2006, including the UCSF Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, the UCSF Mt. Zion Infusion Center, California Pacific Medical Center, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, and Laguna Honda Hospital’s Pain and Healing Clinic. She specializes in massage therapy for patients with cancer, neurological challenges, and complex chronic pain. She is proficient in a range of massage modalities, including Swedish massage, craniosacral therapy, and somatic bodywork.

She is a member of the Academic Collaborative of Integrative Healthcare, where she serves on the Hospital Based Massage Therapy task force. She is also a preferred practitioner and member of the Education Committee with the Society for Oncology Massage, an international organization for massage therapists working in the field of oncology. She presents at many national conferences and teaches internationally, including in Japan and Mexico. 

In addition to her work at The Osher Center, Ms. Tague is the founder of Tague Consulting, which offers education for massage therapists on working with medically complex clients and consultation with medical centers on developing or growing massage therapy services.

Ms. Tague co-authored the textbook “Hands in Healthcare: Massage Therapy for the Adult Hospital Patient” published by Handspring Publishing in 2021. 

Ms. Tague has published research and numerous articles that can be found in Massage Magazine, Journal for Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Journal of Bodywork & Movement Therapies, and Global Advances in Health & Medicine.

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About the Association of Massage Therapists in Healthcare

Vision

The Association of Massage Therapists in Healthcare thrives to make massage therapy accepted, accessible, and respected in all branches of healthcare.

Values

The Association of Massage Therapists in Healthcare values Compassion, Education, People, Goodwill, Inclusivity

AMTiHC Vision

Association of Massage Therapists in Healthcare is incorporated in the state of Michigan.

Association of Massage Therapists in Healthcare is a 501c6. A 501c6 is defined as an association of persons having a common business interest, whose purpose is to promote the common business interest from IRS website.

Bylaws: click here to access AMTiHC bylaws (available soon)

Strategic Plan: click here to access AMTiHC 2021-2023 Strategic Plan (available soon)