Overcoming the organization–practice barrier in sports injury prevention: A nonhierarchical organizational model

Abstract

The organization of sports at the national level has seldom been included in scientific discussions of sports injury prevention. The aim of this study was to develop a model for organization of sports that supports prevention of overuse injuries. The quality function deployment technique was applied in seminars over a two-season period to develop a national organizational structure for athletics in Sweden that facilitates prevention of overuse injuries. Three central features of the resulting model for organization of sports at the national level are (a) diminishment of the organizational hierarchy: participatory safety policy design is introduced through annual meetings where actors from different sectors of the sporting community discuss training, injury prevention, and sports safety policy; (b) introduction of a safety surveillance system: a ubiquitous system for routine collection of injury and illness data; and (c) an open forum for discussion of safety issues: maintenance of a safety forum for participants from different sectors of the sport. A nonhierarchical model for organization of sports at the national level - facilitated by modern information technology - adapted for the prevention of overuse injuries has been developed. Further research is warranted to evaluate the new organizational model in prospective effectiveness studies.

Classification of Prevention in Sports Medicine and Epidemiology

“…Extending the traditional classification of prevention with a classification that addresses conditions that not yet display clear biomedical manifestations, but can be identified as epidemiological risk factors, facilitates a more specific and cost-effective delivery of interventions. For instance, a national athletics organization may through injury surveillance have identified areas that display a need for safety promotion (risk-factor-based classification) with coaches and managers involved to deliver the program [26], while simultaneously having identified specific clinical conditions, such as hamstrings injuries (pathology-based classification), requiring secondary prevention programs specifically adapted to the sport [6] that are implemented in clinical settings.…”

The translation of sports injury prevention and safety promotion knowledge: insights from key intermediary organisations

“…It must be noted that key examples where this gap has successfully been bridged do exist, including in the larger NoGAPS project and its successful FootyFirst programme [20]. Further, models such as the non-hierarchical organisational model [21], have been proposed as a means by which constant data and information exchange can be enhanced both across and within end-users.…”

Developing web‐based health guidance for coaches and parents in child athletics (track and field)

“…While disease and injury prevention comes within the healthcare sector, health promotion activities are mainly conducted in the community and involve first‐order and social determinants of health 2 . Child athletics training in Sweden, as in many other countries, is usually performed in clubs and is commonly organized on a voluntary and non‐profit basis 31 . Barriers toward reaching those involved in community sport have been shown, and the gap between available knowledge and its application in practice is well known and the challenges translating research evidence for use by members of the sporting community have been highlighted 32 .…”