Boca Raton, FL (September 21, 2015) — The award-winning Broken Sound Club is the first and only country club in Florida to earn the ‘Cancer Aware’ designation by Wellness for Cancer (WFC) in partnership with SpaFinder Wellness 365 Inc.® (SFW). Upon completion of the specialized Cancer Aware training, BSC’s 13,100-square-foot and LEED certified Moonstone Spa met the WFC and SFW standards required to provide spa treatments and therapies for guests who have experienced or are living with cancer. The specialized program and related designation was designed to increase a spa staff’s level of comfort and confidence in delivering safe and nurturing services to club members who have experienced cancer.
“You are the first country club in Florida and most likely Nationwide. You are a definitive leader…”
According to BSC General Manager and Chief Operating Officer John Crean, CCE, this designation continues to align with BSC’s foresight, efforts and commitment to lead the club industry in providing a healthy and mindful lifestyle to best serve its members and the community. Recognized as one of America’s Healthiest Clubs by Prevo Health Solutions Inc., BSC also partners with Boca Raton Regional Hospital for staff education and providing on-site physical therapy, nutritional counseling and health seminars for club members at the Moonstone Spa and Fitness Center. Crean added that to date the only other spas in South Florida to participate in the trainings that are located within resorts;
Eden Roc in Miami, and Si Spa in Riviera Beach.
Because studies show that ‘the power of touch can help decrease stress, anxiety, depression, pain and fatigue for both cancer patients and survivors’, BSC enrolled for the WFC training that ‘encourages the use of these specialized cancer-focused treatments that are aimed at easing the pain, discomfort and stress of both men and women who are living with the disease’. Such treatments can be provided before, during or after chemotherapy or radiation therapy.
“We learned everything from cancer basics, common treatment and side effects, living the anti-cancer lifestyle and client comfort to scar management, foot reflexology, and mindful touch,” noted Spa Director Leigh-Ann Davidson. “Not only is our team aware, but equipped to better service our members living with cancer and its physical and emotional impact.”
Crean added that “Broken Sound Club chooses to be a trailblazer in the club industry in maximizing our benefit to both our dedicated, and educated staff and engaged membership. Continuous education throughout each department is something we take very seriously, for health and wellness are part of our Club’s core values. We know that a healthy staff is key in maintaining an energized team for delivering exemplary member service; a healthy membership means that our members can actively enjoy all that awaits them…from golf and tennis to dancing the night away at social events.”
SpaFinder Wellness, a spa and wellness media and marketing company, is the first-ever organization to establish standardized and safe cancer-focused training and treatments for the spa and wellness industry. To generate a cancer aware environment, the specialized program uses multiple training formats to engage, motivate and increase the knowledge for the spa professionals. Formats include but are not limited to; performing demonstrations on one another, video presentations, as well as seven modules of mindful lectures and business building tools which employees have to complete in their own time. In order to progress from one module to the next employees are required to pass a highly concentrated test, by passing each module employees graduate to the next level and have the opportunity to study each module further using the information provided to them for continuous learning for up to one year.
Formats include but are not limited to; performing demonstrations on one another, video presentations, as well as seven modules of mindful lectures and business building tools which employees have to complete in their own time. In order to progress from one module to the next employees are required to pass a highly concentrated test, by passing each module employees graduate to the next level and have the opportunity to study each module further using the information provided to them for continuous learning for up to one year.
The ‘Cancer Aware’ training for 18 Moonstone Spa masseuses, nail technicians and aestheticians was conducted by Executive Director for Wellness for Cancer Julie Bach. Since 2001, Bach’s experience in the field of understanding cancer patients has developed from her experience of being in and out of cancer centers for her parents, being a caregiver, and working with clients who have experienced cancer in her wellness facility and cancer centers. The founding and evolution of Wellness for Cancer, a non-profit organization was based on Bach’s personal experience of losing both parents to cancer and the internal work that she did with Felix Lopez, a mindfulness and meditation teacher. Bach has been a spa owner since 2001, is a licensed esthetician and manicurist, certified health coach, yoga teacher and holds a Masters of Business Administration from Harvard University.
“Broken Sound Club’s commitment toward forward-thinking practices have presented its spa staff with the skills and knowledge to not just meet members’ needs, but to exceed those needs beyond a usual treatment protocol making each service a unique and beneficial experience,” said Julie Bach, Founder of Spa4thePink and Executive Director for Wellness for Cancer. ”It is refreshing to know that Broken Sound, a definitive leader in all aspects of the spa industry, aspires to not only promote a healthy lifestyle for their members but to provide the opportunities to educate them on how cancer wellness can enhance their day-to-day life.”
About Broken Sound Club
Whatever one’s passion or interest…their active enviable home life, business life, sporting life, and social life complement each other perfectly at Broken Sound Club. Known as the “friendly” club for its signature blend of warmth, elegance and genuine hospitality, this award-winning private gated golf and country club community offers a choice of 27 lushly landscaped intimate residential villages, each with its own character. All are just minutes away from its main clubhouse with indoor and outdoor dining, two Audubon Sanctuary certified signature golf courses (one host to the PGA Champions Tour season opener), a two-acre poolscape with bistro, a 35,000-square-foot spa and fitness center, and 23 tennis courts. This 5-Star Platinum Club of America is conveniently close to two international airports, and just a few miles from the private Boca Raton Executive Airport, Boca’s burgeoning Class A office parks and vibrant Downtown, pristine beaches, A-rated public and award-winning private schools, two universities, sports arenas and stadiums, and an exciting world of shopping, dining, art and culture, recreation, and nightlife.
About Spafinder Wellness, Inc.®
Spafinder Wellness, Inc.® is the world’s largest media and marketing company for the spa and wellness industry and the leading consumer resource for feeling good and living well all year round. With nearly 30 years of experience as a spa and wellness authority, millions of people find inspiration to keep well every day via the Spafinder Wellness 365™ brand, also known for its widely distributed gift cards — available at 40,000-plus retailers worldwide — and its global network of 26,000-plus spas, salons, fitness, yoga and Pilates studios and travel destinations. The company’s Workplace Wellness 365™ division offers incentive products and partnerships that help to foster wellness in the workplace. Learn more at spafinder.com, spafinder.co.uk and spafinder.ca.
About Cancer for Wellness
Wellness for Cancer is for spas and wellness facilities that want to increase their level of comfort and confidence in delivering safe and nurturing services to clients who have experienced cancer. Their core product is a flexible, cancer focused educational platform that provides a cost-effective solution to train multiple staff, departments and locations. They have developed the first standardized objective set of training and business criteria. This approach enables friends and families, employers and end-clients to locate providers with confidence.
