URL study guide
https://studiegids.vu.nl/en/courses/2024-2025/B_EPIPRAHCourse Objective
After the course the student can:• collaborate on the topic of health management and injury prevention with coaches, physicians and other colleagues in the elite sports environment;
• describe and discuss the epidemiology, aetiology, rehabilitation and prevention of sports related injuries
• apply diagnostic, prognostic, rehabilitative principles of common sports related injuries;
• discuss the value of contemporary rehabilitation and preventive approaches in elite sports.
Course Content
Athletes are driven to optimise their athletic performance. The Olympic paradigm ‘Citius, Altius, Fortius’ is a clear reference to this quest to become the best athlete. To perform optimally an athlete should not only train hard, but also take care of his or her health. In case of injury or illness, one is not able to perform at full capacity. One may think for instance the risk of injury, overreaching or systemic diseases (e.g. asthma) resulting from participation in high level sports. Such negative side effects obviously hamper the performance of athletes. Athlete health management and sports medicine plays a pivotal role in managing the risks and consequences of such negative outcomes in sport. This course will dive in 6 weeks deeper into the health problems sustained by elite athletes, how these health problems affect performance, and how health problems can be effectively prevented. The course is intended to be a comprehensive contemporary program on methodology in sports injury research. The course will provide the student with a solid and comprehensive background on epidemiological methods employed in sports-injury research, to make the student aware of key methodological issues, and to let the student recognize the effect of employed methodology on interpretations of study results. In addition, this course will give the student a clear and solid outline of the road that leads to health management and sports-injury prevention. It should be noted that this course will not provide a comprehensive review of the available literature on sports injuries, prevention, and treatment. It is intended as a thorough epidemiological and methodological background and reference for students in the field of elite sports performance.Teaching Methods
The first 5 weeks consist of a face-to-face 2 hour lecture, and a 2 hour practical or group work. The 6th week will only include a 2 hour practical. It is not mandatory to attend. Slides will be made available, but classes will not be recorded.Method of Assessment
Assessment of the course will be in the form of a written essay. The essay will allow you to show that you know, understand and are able to employ key concepts of athlete health protection as taught in this course.Literature
will be provided during the courseTarget Audience
This course is only available for students from the High Performancetrack.Language of Tuition
- English
Study type
- Master