Abstract
Many international sporting organizations have recommended practices to reduce the risk of injury. These practices include screening for injury, having appropriate emergency medical care, and protocols for managing injury before return-to-play. The extent of the uptake of these practices in a developing country such as Uganda, is unknown. Using a descriptive case study approach, this investigation focused on a sample of injured athletes (n = 75) in Uganda from four main sports associations (football, athletics, basketball and rugby). The data were collected through observations and interviews after the injury. Using a best medical practice framework the phases of emergency, intermediate, rehabilitative, and return-to-sports participation were described. Nine conditions/types of injury were included. The results revealed a lack of specific pre-season screening or return-to-play readiness for all the injured athletes. Further, there was a lack of application of best practice principles for most of the injury types. For athletes who received medical care, the results show inconsistencies and inadequacies from the acute stage of the injury to return-to-sports participation. This study identified barriers such as up-to-date knowledge among the sports resource providers; the gaps for appropriate and adequate specific facilities for managing injured athletes, and policies to mandate care of injured athletes. These barriers detract from applying best medical practices.
Highlights
As competitive sports have become increasingly popular, there is an increase in the prevalence and incidence of sports related injuries at all levels of participation.[1,2,3,4] This can be explained by overuse injuries from high volume of training, rule violations, and unavoidable in-African Health SciencesAfrican Health Sciences, Vol 21 Issue 2, June, 202114 and documentation of injury occurrences.[15,16,17,18,19] We hypothesize that Uganda is in early stages of sports injury surveillance
In evaluating the intermediate phase of medical care, the results revealed that only 61% of the injured athletes sought further health care from a medical facility after they had sustained injuries
Findings of our study reveal the inadequacies in medical services during the emergency phase of sports-related injuries among Ugandan athletes
Summary
As competitive sports have become increasingly popular, there is an increase in the prevalence and incidence of sports related injuries at all levels of participation.[1,2,3,4] This can be explained by overuse injuries from high volume of training, rule violations, and unavoidable in-African Health SciencesAfrican Health Sciences, Vol 21 Issue 2, June, 202114 and documentation of injury occurrences.[15,16,17,18,19] We hypothesize that Uganda is in early stages of sports injury surveillance. The aim of this study was to examine the sports medicine practices in managing athletes before and after injury in Uganda, using the various stages of the best medical practice framework model. The aim of this study was to examine the sports medicine practices in managing athletes before and after injury in Uganda, using the various stages of the best medical practice framework model as a source of comparison. Many international sporting organizations have recommended practices to reduce the risk of injury These practices include screening for injury, having appropriate emergency medical care, and protocols for managing injury before return-to-play. Conclusion: This study identified barriers such as up-to-date knowledge among the sports resource providers; the gaps for appropriate and adequate specific facilities for managing injured athletes, and policies to mandate care of injured athletes These barriers detract from applying best medical practices.
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