Press Releases Ahead of His Time From the Swedish Institute 90th Anniversary Newsletter HariJot Singh, P.T., N.D., NCCAOM (Dipl. Ac.) "Our family physician was a homeopath, so I was brought up
with the idea that you have to recognize life's vital forces," Dr. Singh
recalled. He currently practices as an acupuncturist in Santa Fe, NM, where
he shares an office with his wife, Seva, a midwife. "In high school I helped
coach the basketball team, and watched when injured players went to the
osteopath for treatment. He always impressed me. I think that's why I
decided to study chiropractics right after high school." Shortly after graduation, Dr. Singh received a draft notice
summoning him to the Army. He promptly joined the Air Force instead. His
studies in chiropractic and physiotherapy landed him an assignment in the
medical corps in Belleville, IL. It just so happened that Western University
of California had a branch of its naturopathy school there, so Dr. Singh
enrolled and completed that program in 1957. Until 1967, the practice of massage in New York City
required a city license. "It was an excellent license, backed by very strong
enforcement," Dr. Singh explained. "A practitioner had to pass an exam and
get a health certificate. Once you had a license, your place of practice
would be inspected by the Fire Department and Health Department on a regular
basis.
Class of 1954
Part 2:
However, it wasn't easy back in the early 1950's to make a living as a
chiropractor, since it was not yet a licensed practice. So Dr. Singh
enrolled at the Swedish Institute. His class was the last one to graduate
with a diploma in physiotherapy. After 1954, the discipline was divided into
two distinct courses of study; physical therapy — which was transferred to a
hospital setting and later to a college degree — and massage therapy. The
Swedish Institute chose to keep its focus on the practice of massage.
Venturing Into New Terrain
When he returned to the East Coast he was armed with diplomas. He set up a
practice in New Jersey, near his father's hardware store. Most of his
clients sought help for injury related problems, which became the focus of
Dr. Singh's practice. He was successful, yet still felt a need to learn
more.
He began journeying to New York City's Chinatown to study acupuncture. There
was no school at that time, only opportunities to apprentice, which he did.
He became one of the first Westerners in the U.S. to learn acupuncture,
picking up the ability to speak Cantonese along the way.
One day in the early 1960's he picked up a New York City newspaper and saw a
help wanted ad for teachers at the Swedish Institute. He applied and was
soon teaching anatomy and physiology at his alma mater. It wasn't long,
however, before his characteristic drive to challenge the status quo
surfaced.
"Ms. Phillips, the director at the time, called me in one day to chastise
me," Dr. Singh recalled with amusement. "Apparently some of the students had
complained to her, because I started to describe massage as a form of energy
work. They said they didn't want to know about energy, they just wanted to
learn 'massage.'" He shook his head knowingly. "They just weren't ready."
At that time, the school was across from the old Madison Square Garden on
Eighth Avenue and 50th Street. "When Ms. Eckardt took over as president of
the school in 1968," Dr. Singh said, "we moved to West 71st Street and
Broadway." Dr. Singh became director of the school, a position he held until
1984.
Changing Laws and Licenses
"When the licensing was transferred to the state level, the original law was
written to allow some massage to be practiced by non-professionals. That's
when the massage parlor business opened up in the city. There were no
'massage parlors' in New York City before that." Although a revision of the
law in 1975 restricts the practice of massage only to those with licenses,
the loss of local enforcement means unlicensed practice of massage, a
felony, usually goes unpunished.
While New York State further strengthened the profession in 1989 by
officially recognizing the title of "licensed massage therapist" and the use
of "L.M.T." after a licensee's name as part of the professional title, Dr.
Singh was once again ahead of the times.
"When I was director, we used to have the word 'masseur' or 'masseuse' on
the diplomas. We didn't use the word 'patient' or 'client' back then, we
said 'patrons'. But I thought it was important to change that mindset, to
liberate us from the idea of being patronized. So, I first changed the term
we used to 'massage practitioner.' Then I changed it to 'massage therapist.'
The state was upset by that at first. But eventually the term prevailed."
During his tenure as director, Dr. Singh hired some of the faculty still
working here: Lucy Liben, now Dean of the Massage Therapy Program,
Jill Thompson, Director of Academic Support Services for the Massage
Therapy Program, and Bob Altheim, an instructor in both the Massage
Therapy Program and Acupuncture Program.
Dr. Singh feels that although massage and acupuncture are ancient forms of
therapy, the practitioners of today keep them fresh. "There may be lots of
'new' courses or dogmatic curriculums, but that's not what's important," he
ventured. "What I emphasized when I taught was self-realization, compassion
and love. Work on yourself. This will be an important part of your success."