Massage therapist sues Ashland chiropractic clinic - Jefferson Public Radio

[Jane Vaughan]

Powell began working at Southern Oregon Chiropractic in October 2023. That was one month after a massage therapist who formerly worked at the clinic, Kevin Farrow, was charged with three counts of third degree sexual abuse. That case is ongoing, with a trial currently scheduled for May.

Despite that, Powell said the clinic didn’t provide additional employee training to ensure client safety.

"I was feeling really strong conviction that that would be really therapeutic for the clients and patients to be able to say, ‘Hey, Southern Oregon Chiropractic is really taking this situation seriously, and they're doing all that they can do to make sure everybody's really up to date with our training,'" she said.

"Plaintiff did not receive any information, nor was there a discussion regarding ethics, boundaries, trauma informed care, cultural competence, communication, or transparency about the incidents, and going forward," the lawsuit reads.

Powell’s lawsuit, which was filed in September, claims she suffered from whistleblower retaliation after she raised concerns, as well as other violations of employment law, including breach of contract and gender discrimination.

The lawsuit claims that "due to the untenable working conditions and adverse employment actions," Powell was constructively discharged, which is when an employee resigns due to intolerable working conditions.

CEO of Southern Oregon Chiropractic Rachelle Sinclair didn’t respond to requests for comment. The clinic’s response to the lawsuit denies these allegations, including that Powell was constructively discharged.

Southern Oregon Chiropractic "employs active Licensed Massage Therapists, governed by the Oregon State Board of Massage Therapists, which requires extensive continued education including mandatory continuing education in Ethics, Boundaries, Communication and Cultural Competency, in addition to optional continuing education including trauma related," the response reads.

Powell claims she found out about Farrow's charges from her clients, not from management.

"I wasn't given the informed consent by my managers or anything to know, ‘Hey, heads up, this happened here, and some of our clients are going to be really affected,'" she said.

This case doesn’t have a trial date.