A recently established Sports Injury Prevention Taskforce will greatly aid in the reduction of sports injury rates, according to Sports Medicine Australia.
An initiative of the Victorian Government, the taskforce will investigate the issue of sports injury prevention, supported by organisations including Sports Medicine Australia, VicHealth and VicSport, as well as prominent academics in the sports injury field.
“Statistics have shown that up to half of all sporting injuries can be prevented however prevention is often compromised by a lack of knowledge,” said Sports Medicine Australia Victorian branch executive officer, Lynne Sheehan.
“With Australia at the forefront of sport safety research, the taskforce couldn’t be better equipped to consider barriers to implementing injury prevention strategies and make recommendations which aim to provide key sport stakeholders with sports safety and injury prevention knowledge in the hope that a safer sporting environment can be achieved.”
The taskforce will deliver a report in 2013 to support sporting bodies, sports management authorities and local government with risk management strategies and sports injury prevention plans.
“Our ultimate aim is to see an increase in the use of injury prevention strategies and ultimately a reduction in the level of sports injury rates whilst achieving an increase in participation rates,” said Sheehan.
The taskforce will be led by Australian Diamonds Commonwealth Games captain and Vixens co-captain, Sharelle McMahon, while members of the taskforce include Professor Caroline Finch from Monash University, Professor Geraldine Naughton from the Australian Catholic University and Dr Dara Twomey from the University of Ballarat, as well as representatives from VicHealth, Vicsport, Municipal Association of Victoria, Department of Health and the Department of Planning and Community Development.