When ‘just doing it’ is not enough: Assessing the fidelity of player performance of an injury prevention exercise program

Abstract

The observational checklist demonstrated high inter-rater reliability. Many players observed did not perform the exercises as prescribed, raising concern as to whether they would be receiving anticipated program benefits. Where quality of exercise performance is important, evaluation and reporting of program fidelity should include direct observations of participants.

The use and modification of injury prevention exercises by professional youth soccer teams

“…This study adds to a growing body of recently published research (Lindblom et al., ; Fortington et al., ; Frank et al., ; Donaldson et al., ) highlighting the key role of successful implementation in preventing sports injuries. Employing the industry‐standard FIFA 11+ program for amateur soccer as the comparator, the findings shed light on the use and modification of injury prevention exercises in professional youth soccer.…”

“…Professional teams typically train on an almost daily basis, compete both nationally and internationally, and are supported by large multi‐disciplinary teams including soccer coaches, fitness coaches, and physiotherapists. It has been reported that professional teams adapt injury prevention programs to fit their specific context (O'Brien et al., ), which aligns with findings from amateur soccer (Lindblom et al., ; Frank et al., ) and Australian Football (Fortington et al., ; Twomey et al., ) settings. Unfortunately, there is a paucity of published information exploring exactly how, and why, teams modify individual exercises to fit their specific settings.…”

“…In view of the challenge of implementing IPEPs alongside heavy game schedules and other training priorities, there is need to define the minimum dosage of core IPEP components that is needed to achieve (and maintain) injury prevention effects. In implementation science, this is known as the adaptation vs fidelity challenge (Fortington et al., ).…”

Seven Steps for Developing and Implementing a Preventive Training Program

“…Movement quality or technique is one of the most critical aspects influencing the success of an injury prevention program. 29 As such, significant emphasis was placed on the importance of excellent movement quality or technique when performing each of the DIME PTP exercises rather than on the quantity of repetitions completed. Common movement quality / technique errors and corresponding corrective instructions were also described for each of the DIME exercises.…”

Coach‐led prevention programs are effective in reducing anterior cruciate ligament injury risk in female athletes: A number‐needed‐to‐treat analysis

“…17 Secondly, it is often assumed coaches are capable of effectively delivering the prevention program after providing them with an instructional session (which is not always provided, see Table 3) and educational materials. 34 The third challenge is that there is limited evidence on how coaches' attitudes influence the adoption of prevention programs. One study 32 examining high school coaches' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors toward lower extremity injury prevention programs found that negative attitudes toward injury prevention were not a major barrier to implementing a prevention program.…”