RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Coaches’ attitudes to injury and injury prevention: a qualitative study of Irish field hockey coaches
JF BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine
JO BMJ OPEN SP EX MED
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd
SP e001074
DO 10.1136/bmjsem-2021-001074
VO 7
IS 3
A1 Huw Rees
A1 James Matthews
A1 Ulrik McCarthy Persson
A1 Eamonn Delahunt
A1 Colin Boreham
A1 Catherine Blake
YR 2021
UL http://bmjopensem.bmj.com/content/7/3/e001074.abstract
AB Translating injury prevention research into practice has been challenging, which may be due to a poor understanding of the contextual factors influencing the occurrence of injury. Coaches are key figure in sporting environments and hold pivotal roles in preventing injury. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the attitudes of field hockey coaches to injury and injury prevention. Thirteen field hockey coaches from the amateur Irish Hockey League were interviewed. Reflexive thematic analysis led to three general dimensions comprised five higher-order themes, categorised from 16 lower-order themes. Coaches had positive beliefs regarding the benefits of injury prevention over injury management. However, they lacked the necessary knowledge and skills to successfully implement injury prevention strategies with players. Coaches recognised the importance of empowering players to self-manage training loads to promote injury prevention but acknowledged the need to protect younger players from increased loads. Many barriers to injury prevention were not controllable by coaches including fixture congestion and poor structuring of the sport’s domestic calendar. While coaches can play a key role in the implementation of injury prevention strategies, there is also a requirement to examine how system level barriers to injury prevention can be reduced.No data are available.