Setting Professional Licensing Standards - Should We ?
Wednesday, May 11, 2011 
Perhaps you've seen the news, bills in Georgia and Texas are the latest legislation that has been introduced relating to personal trainer licensing.This, along with other pending legislative initiatives, are opposed by IHRSA, which said in a recent statement regarding one of the bills, "“The legislation, SB 695, would be extremely detrimental to the industry and would have the dual effect of reducing the number of personal trainers and group exercise instructors and the number of consumers who are able to use their services to pursue healthier lifestyles." Really ? So is the answer to battle each legisltative issue state by state and assume there should NOT be a minimum standard ? (see follow up post from Helen Drukin below cliarfying IHRSA position).
This morning I read an article by Elaine Platt, owner of Smart Workout, titled "We Need To Set The Standard For Licensing Legislation". In the article Elaine writes:
From what I’ve read, it appears that the umbrella organizations of our industry are against requiring licensing. It is from this position that I respectfully dissent. I believe that licensing is much needed and would be positive for the industry. I implore these organizations to re-deploy their lobbying efforts. Instead of trying to defeat this legislation, they should endeavor to ensure their own participation in the licensing process. Our industry organizations should work with legislators to formulate legislation providing that certifications from agencies recommended by them would become the criteria for obtaining a license. States don’t know how to measure competency in the fitness field. They need industry groups to provide them with standards.
Isn't Elain right ? How can we move the fitness industry forward to become a meaningful solution to the sick care crisis without uniform minimal certification standards ? Do you think doctors are going to be comfotrable referring their patients to facilities without standards ? Many of the industrialized countries around the world have these requirements. As an article titled "Dangerous Personal Trainers pointed out in Women's Health:
Trainers don't need to meet any federal or state requirements. Even the woman who waxes your upper lip may have had more training--and she is certainly subject to more legal oversight--than the one who pushes your cardiovascular, muscular, and nervous systems; jacks up your heart rate and blood pressure; and strains your joints and ligaments.
Why do you think organization's like IHRSA oppose minimum fitness trainer certification standards ? Please write me Bryan O'Rourke, and share your views. What's keeping the fitness industry from helping to create a solution to this problem and elevate the industry ? What do you think ?
Bryan K. O'Rourke
I contacted Helen Durkin, JD, who is Executive VP of Public Policy at the International Health Racquet and Sport Club Association. She kindly took a moment to clarify IHRSA's position.
Hi Bryan,
The Club Industry article is a bit misleading. Most of the legislation mentioned in the article was just bad legislation. The worse for example is NJ which would have create one private company in NJ that would be the only company that could do the training for personal training. It was our believe that it would it would effectively kill the personal training industry in NJ.
Here is the Board position on personal training
IHRSA recommends that clubs hire personal trainers who hold either a current certification from a certifying body that is accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) or have a training certificate or degree from an educational institution accredited by an organization recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation or the U.S. Department of Education.
Before coming to this position, the Board worked with a large group of personal training organizations over a couple of years to examine three different models for personal training regulation. The third party certification method captured in the language above. This is the same basic model we use for lawyers in the US. (An example close to home.) This is the same kind of model that is going on with the health club facility standards being developed by NSF.
IHRSA isn't apposed to all legislation. We support legislation in Massachusetts, which would serve to establish minimum standards, protect against ill conceived licensure, and ensure that the first personal trainer law to go on the books in the country reflects our board position.
I also have to say on a personal level, after working with state government administering the consumer protection laws and other regulations on clubs, I don't believe that state governments would do a good job at licensing personal trainers. Bottomline, I think IHRSA does support standards for personal trainers, just not state licensing. I'm happy to discuss this if you would like.
Thanks for clarifying this point Helen.
Reader Comments (8)
In my view IHRSA should be on the other side of the fence on this and helping to insure that the training needed to be a fitness professional is obtained. If IHRSA does not become part of the solution, they will become part of the problem by hindering instead of, as noted Bryan, adopting this change.
Do we need another voice that can represent the real truths about what position we should take on issues as this? I absolutely feel we do and just letting IHRSA speak for us all is absolute sanity. We as an industry have got to get out of our own way and be able to accept change, wrap our arms around progress and have opportunities to grow our industry.
Robert
I think you are correct. It is short sited and we need to approach the issue proactively. Thanks for sharing your views. You've helped me to understand the importance of this for the industry and in our own business for many years now. I appreciate the leadership.
As a Fitness Professional and a member of IHRSA, I think states trying to regulate is just another way to get a piece of the pie. Charge a fee to get a license after we pay to get an education, pay to get CEU credits to continue our education, its a joke. You mentioned people waxing lips having more training. We see in any profession Lawyers, Doctors, Hairdressers or Trainiers, there is good and bad in all of these professions. Those who take their craft seriously and professionally and those that don't. Is another group wanting money and wanting to put their rules and restriction on a profession going to make a difference. I think not!
Excellence invites scrutiny and higher yet fair standards. Any fitness professional paying attention over the past decades has seen this coming. There are pros and cons but initially I think it would thin the herd and improve fitness pro quality. Over time, governmental control will likely end up mandating training protocols to a level where people need a specialist for every aspect of their fitness ultimately destroying the client-trainer relationship as we've seen in the medical industry......however the first few governmental mandates will likely improve the quality of service and allow for financial gains for the diligently qualified.
Jared - Yes I think you are correct, particularly with respect to this comment : "he first few governmental mandates will likely improve the quality of service and allow for financial gains for the diligently qualified." There is a problem in that the economic models around trainers and facilities are coming under increasing pressure. The industry needs to decide - where it wants to evolve. Failing to do this puts it a great risk and in my view will contribute to a mass exodus from existing models to new ones. That is already underway.
Bryan - a great topic for discussion. Fitness Australia's experience with industry 'self-regulation' has been very positive and is well received in Australia. In my view it is a better outcome if the industry self-regulates rather than having a series of government mandated licensing schemes that fail to keep pace with such a rapidly changing industry and profession. This is a major part of Fitness Australia's platform and it is having a very positive impact on standards of professionalism, safety and customer care across the industry. Governments are also increasingly paying attention to the association because it has taken this position and the existence of a national standards and quality framework engenders more trust and confidence in the industry. This is particularly relevant in our discussions with medical and allied health professionals who are seeking an understanding of who they are potentially working with and/or referring their clients to.
I've been sitting in on this discussion here in Ohio and the Midwest for over 20 years now. While we absolutely need to raise the barrier of entry for someone to call themselves a fitness professional. I'm personally not convinced the process of licensing achieves that goal. In Ohio, we have licensing for Registered Dietitians and Certified Athletic Trainers. While it's easy to identify those individual and their qualifications, it's done nothing to promote their services to consumers. Arguably it's actually created an additional burden that's interfering with them professionally. One of the challenges we have is that there aren't a string of broken bones and dead bodies behind the jack-rabbits that are calling themselves trainers today. In fact we too often glorify them with reality TV shows. The general public is meeting their emotional need for fitness with late night investments in infomercial products and unused club memberships that are just cheap enough to ride under the decision to cancel radar. Our challenge is to evolve to the point that consumers can distinguish between true professionals and joe-bag-o-donuts hang out at the gym parasites. This comes with customer engagement that is based on "authentic evidence" of return on investment of the purchased service, not a certificate or license on the wall. http://bit.ly/7KdBUS
You definitely put a new spin on a subject thats been written about for years. Great stuff, just great!