A pay-it-forward fund for oncology massage and lymphedema care.
Sometimes I’ll get a call from someone who says that they wish that they could receive oncology massage or lymphedema treatment, but they are strapped with medical bills or they are having difficulty with income, and without help from insurance, they can’t afford to come and see me. It’s something I’ve struggled with ever since I started practicing – not wanting to turn anyone away because of financial reasons, but still needing to make a living.
There’s a pizza place in Philadelphia – Rosa’s Fresh Pizza – where you can buy a slice of pizza for someone in need in the community. It’s anonymous, it’s on the honor system, and anyone can come in at any time and receive a slice of pizza that was already paid for by someone else – no questions asked. I thought I could do the same thing with massage.
Touch of Kindness models this same idea. On my website, you’ll always be able to see how much is available in the fund at any time. Anyone can contribute to this pool of resources, and anyone can ask to use money from the fund toward treatment sessions with me. Each donation gets a sticky note on my wall, and those sticky notes can apply as payment toward my professional fee. No questions asked. And it’s not an all-or-nothing thing; you can use whatever amount you’d like toward the cost of a session.
And if you're a massage therapist or other business owner, you can set up something similar in your own practice! Email me at [email protected] and I will show you how I did it and how easy it can be for you to set it up as well.
Pay it forward. Spread the word.
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Megan is a member of the Society for Oncology Massage and is certified by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork. She is also a Certified Lymphedema Therapist, providing Manual Lymph Drainage (MLD) and compression bandaging. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Hofstra University and has taken coursework in oncology massage, lymphedema therapy, elastic taping for lymphedema, and post-mastectomy scar tissue mobilization.
