Background: Despite the importance of sports injury prevention in youth, no broad scale approaches that work in real-life situations with significant positive effects exist. Main reasons for this are poor uptake and maintenance of current sports injury prevention exercises.
Objective: In order to improve uptake of sports injury prevention routines, this project set out to: 1. identify the specifics of current injury prevention programs within 6 European countries, and 2: to establish wishes and needs regarding injury prevention of the end-users (sport coaches, physical educators and youth) within 6 European countries.
Design: Semi-structured interviews and focus group sessions.
Setting: Youth sports teams and physical education (PE) classes.
Patients (or Participants): Interviews and focus group sessions were performed within 6 participating countries (Belgium, Denmark, Lithuania, Romania, The Netherlands, United Kingdom). National stakeholders were interviewed to identify injury prevention programs. The program owners of the identified programs were then individually interviewed. The focus group sessions were organized with youth basketball and soccer players and PE pupils. Separate focus group sessions were organized for basketball/soccer coaches and physical educators.
Interventions (or Assessment of Risk Factors): This qualitative study provided input for the development of a freely available ICT based platform with video material of routines designed to prevent sports injuries in youth.
Main Outcome Measurements: Overview of country specific results of interviews and focus groups.
Results: This study will describe the current availability of national injury prevention programs within 6 European countries. The results of the focus group sessions will establish the differences in beliefs regarding injury prevention in 6 European countries regarding injury prevention.
Conclusions: In the coming year, the Move Healthy project will use the qualitative results of this study to develop a freely available ICT based platform with video material of routines developed to prevent sports injuries in youth.
Sport injuries are a major reason for reduced participation and drop-out from sports and PE. Refraining from sport participation has negative bearing effects on mental and physical wellbeing, which tracks into adulthood. It is therefore important for youth to be facilitated into lifelong active participation in physical activity and sport, as the importance of physical activity for the health of youth is undisputed. Participation in physical education (PE) classes and membership of sports clubs and are essential for health enhancing physical activity. Despite the importance of sports injury prevention in youth, no broad scale approaches that work in real-life situations with significant positive effects exist. Main reasons for this are very poor uptake and maintenance of current sports injury prevention exercises. Sportscoaches and physical educators experience these exercises as not context specific, time consuming and not contributing to their training goals. Whereas youth perceives these exercises as not attractive, no fun and without any play or game component. These aspects cause lack of maintenance and thus no significant reduction of injuries. Recent scientific and practical insights promote more emphasis on motivation through autonomy and attractive exercise routines based on principles of motor learning which can be integrated in regular training sessions or physical education classes. Purpose: Therefore, the Move Healthy project develops ICT based support video material of routines for and with physical educators and sport coaches, which supports them to prevent sports injuries in youth. This material should be easy to integrate in regular training sessions or physical education classes.
Document (PDF)
Not known
