Rogue masseuses abuse patients while dodging police checks

The man then applied for a permit to work with children so he could continue working as a sports instructor. Even after permission was refused after Victoria Police flagged problems, the man was unable to appeal.

A sports coach was also convicted of sexual offenses in February 2023 while performing therapeutic massages on a teenager during his coaching duties.

Almost a quarter of complaints about massage therapists submitted to HCC involve allegations of sexual harassment. Health Complaints Commissioner Assistant Professor Bernice Redley said there were challenges with oversight systems that rely on people knowing where and how they can come forward and complain.

“The numbers we’re seeing have been pretty consistent for a number of years and that’s worrying; any kind of sexual boundary violation is worrying and it’s something we take really seriously,” he said.

Redley said HCC sometimes learns through the media that police blame massage therapists because alleged victims don’t contact them.

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“That concerns me because we’re in a position to take immediate action. Sometimes the police can arrest someone but get out on bail, and that doesn’t necessarily prevent those people from providing services,” he said.

Massage therapists fall into the second tier of healthcare providers; This means they are not legally required to have formal qualifications such as doctors, nurses, physiotherapists and occupational therapists, or be registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).

Instead, in Victoria and some other states they are captured by a secondary system of “negative licensing”; Here, complaints made against them can be investigated and bans can be imposed if individuals are determined to pose a risk to public safety.

An independent review The group, led by former New South Wales Health Complaints Commissioner Sue Dawson, was the latest to call for better protection for patients.

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The report raised serious concerns about sexual abuse and recommended that Australian governments expand the national health regulation plan to include new high-risk professions, along with national rules and complaint handling processes for massage therapists and other non-registered healthcare providers.

The Association of Massage Therapists (AMT) is one of several industry organizations that provide practitioners with a form of self-regulation through codes of ethics and professional standards, while promoting a National Code of Conduct that may be implemented by the HCC.

However, after pressing for more oversight for more than a decade, the association’s chief executive Rebecca Barnett said more was needed to protect the public and maintain the reputation of the majority of safe therapists.

AMT is calling for the creation of a national massage therapist registry where the public can search the names of massage therapists, check their qualifications, and determine whether they meet certain standards of practice. The AMT also wants to see mandatory police checks for practitioners, something that is required by various industry groups, although it is not a legal requirement to work as a massage therapist in Australia.

“That’s not a good look, because it makes it look like it’s an industry full of predators, which is absolutely not the case,” Barnett said.

“The complaints system is quite fragmented, which means that when people experience something very traumatic they are already confused and trying to figure out where to turn next.

“This fragmentation needs to be addressed with a more coherent form of regulation.”

An Australian Department of Health spokesman said health ministers had asked the Health Workforce Taskforce to review its risk assessment methodology to decide which professions should be regulated under the national plan, which is due to be completed by mid-2026.

“Sexual assault is a criminal offense and the Australian Government has no tolerance for this behaviour,” a Department of Health spokesperson said.

Anyone concerned about the conduct of a healthcare provider can contact the Health Complaints Commissioner at: hcc.vic.gov.au or call 1300 582 113.