Implementing injury surveillance systems alongside injury prevention programs: evaluation of an online surveillance system in a community setting
- Ekegren, Christina, Donaldson, Alex, Gabbe, Belinda, Finch, Caroline
- Authors: Ekegren, Christina , Donaldson, Alex , Gabbe, Belinda , Finch, Caroline
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Injury Epidemiology Vol. 1, no. 1 (2014), p. 1-15
- Relation: http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/565900
- Relation: http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1058737
- Relation: http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/565907
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: BACKGROUND:Previous research aimed at improving injury surveillance standards has focused mainly on issues of data quality rather than upon the implementation of surveillance systems. There are numerous settings where injury surveillance is not mandatory and having a better understanding of the barriers to conducting injury surveillance would lead to improved implementation strategies. One such setting is community sport, where a lack of available epidemiological data has impaired efforts to reduce injury. This study aimed to i) evaluate use of an injury surveillance system following delivery of an implementation strategy; and ii) investigate factors influencing the implementation of the system in community sports clubs. METHODS:A total of 78 clubs were targeted for implementation of an online injury surveillance system (approximately 4000 athletes) in five community Australian football leagues concurrently enrolled in a pragmatic trial of an injury prevention program called FootyFirst. System implementation was evaluated quantitatively, using the RE-AIM framework, and qualitatively, via semi-structured interviews with targeted-users. RESULTS:Across the 78 clubs, there was 69% reach, 44% adoption, 23% implementation and 9% maintenance. Reach and adoption were highest in those leagues receiving concurrent support for the delivery of FootyFirst. Targeted-users identified several barriers and facilitators to implementation including personal (e.g. belief in the importance of injury surveillance), socio-contextual (e.g. understaffing and athlete underreporting) and systems factors (e.g. the time taken to upload injury data into the online system). CONCLUSIONS:The injury surveillance system was implemented and maintained by a small proportion of clubs. Outcomes were best in those leagues receiving concurrent support for the delivery of FootyFirst, suggesting that engagement with personnel at all levels can enhance uptake of surveillance systems. Interview findings suggest that increased uptake could also be achieved by educating club personnel on the importance of recording injuries, developing clearer injury surveillance guidelines, increasing club staffing and better remunerating those who conduct surveillance, as well as offering flexible surveillance systems in a range of accessible formats. By increasing the usage of surveillance systems, data will better represent the target population and increase our understanding of the injury problem, and how to prevent it, in specific settings.
- Authors: Ekegren, Christina , Donaldson, Alex , Gabbe, Belinda , Finch, Caroline
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Injury Epidemiology Vol. 1, no. 1 (2014), p. 1-15
- Relation: http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/565900
- Relation: http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/1058737
- Relation: http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/565907
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: BACKGROUND:Previous research aimed at improving injury surveillance standards has focused mainly on issues of data quality rather than upon the implementation of surveillance systems. There are numerous settings where injury surveillance is not mandatory and having a better understanding of the barriers to conducting injury surveillance would lead to improved implementation strategies. One such setting is community sport, where a lack of available epidemiological data has impaired efforts to reduce injury. This study aimed to i) evaluate use of an injury surveillance system following delivery of an implementation strategy; and ii) investigate factors influencing the implementation of the system in community sports clubs. METHODS:A total of 78 clubs were targeted for implementation of an online injury surveillance system (approximately 4000 athletes) in five community Australian football leagues concurrently enrolled in a pragmatic trial of an injury prevention program called FootyFirst. System implementation was evaluated quantitatively, using the RE-AIM framework, and qualitatively, via semi-structured interviews with targeted-users. RESULTS:Across the 78 clubs, there was 69% reach, 44% adoption, 23% implementation and 9% maintenance. Reach and adoption were highest in those leagues receiving concurrent support for the delivery of FootyFirst. Targeted-users identified several barriers and facilitators to implementation including personal (e.g. belief in the importance of injury surveillance), socio-contextual (e.g. understaffing and athlete underreporting) and systems factors (e.g. the time taken to upload injury data into the online system). CONCLUSIONS:The injury surveillance system was implemented and maintained by a small proportion of clubs. Outcomes were best in those leagues receiving concurrent support for the delivery of FootyFirst, suggesting that engagement with personnel at all levels can enhance uptake of surveillance systems. Interview findings suggest that increased uptake could also be achieved by educating club personnel on the importance of recording injuries, developing clearer injury surveillance guidelines, increasing club staffing and better remunerating those who conduct surveillance, as well as offering flexible surveillance systems in a range of accessible formats. By increasing the usage of surveillance systems, data will better represent the target population and increase our understanding of the injury problem, and how to prevent it, in specific settings.
Injury reporting via SMS text messaging in community sport
- Ekegren, Christina, Gabbe, Belinda, Finch, Caroline
- Authors: Ekegren, Christina , Gabbe, Belinda , Finch, Caroline
- Date: 2013
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Injury Prevention Vol.20, no.4 (2013), p.266-271.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Background: The use of text messaging or short message service (SMS) for injury reporting is a recent innovation in sport and has not yet been trialled at the community level. Considering the lack of personnel and resources in community sport, SMS may represent a viable option for ongoing injury surveillance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of injury self-reporting via SMS in community Australian football. Methods: A total of 4 clubs were randomly selected from a possible 22 men's community Australian football clubs. Consenting players received an SMS after each football round game asking whether they had been injured in the preceding week. Outcome variables included the number of SMS-reported injuries, players’ response rates and response time. Poisson regression was used to evaluate any change in response rate over the season and the association between response rate and the number of reported injuries. Results: The sample of 139 football players reported 167 injuries via SMS over the course of the season. The total response rate ranged from 90% to 98%. Of those participants who replied on the same day, 47% replied within 5 min. The number of reported injuries decreased as the season progressed but this was not significantly associated with a change in the response rate. Conclusions: The number of injuries reported via SMS was consistent with previous studies in community Australian football. Injury reporting via SMS yielded a high response rate and fast response time and should be considered a viable injury reporting method for community sports settings.
- Authors: Ekegren, Christina , Gabbe, Belinda , Finch, Caroline
- Date: 2013
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Injury Prevention Vol.20, no.4 (2013), p.266-271.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Background: The use of text messaging or short message service (SMS) for injury reporting is a recent innovation in sport and has not yet been trialled at the community level. Considering the lack of personnel and resources in community sport, SMS may represent a viable option for ongoing injury surveillance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of injury self-reporting via SMS in community Australian football. Methods: A total of 4 clubs were randomly selected from a possible 22 men's community Australian football clubs. Consenting players received an SMS after each football round game asking whether they had been injured in the preceding week. Outcome variables included the number of SMS-reported injuries, players’ response rates and response time. Poisson regression was used to evaluate any change in response rate over the season and the association between response rate and the number of reported injuries. Results: The sample of 139 football players reported 167 injuries via SMS over the course of the season. The total response rate ranged from 90% to 98%. Of those participants who replied on the same day, 47% replied within 5 min. The number of reported injuries decreased as the season progressed but this was not significantly associated with a change in the response rate. Conclusions: The number of injuries reported via SMS was consistent with previous studies in community Australian football. Injury reporting via SMS yielded a high response rate and fast response time and should be considered a viable injury reporting method for community sports settings.
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