Revised clearance for participation in physical activity: greater screening responsibility for qualified university-educated fitness professionals.
For many individuals, pre-participation clearance using the PAR-Q and the PARmed-X has become a barrier to adopting a physically active lifestyle. An extensive project is therefore planned to reduce the number of medical referrals from the PAR-Q and to revise the PARmed-X so that it becomes more effective, user friendly, and evidence based. The entire process will likely require 3 years to complete; therefore, as an interim solution, we propose giving greater pre-participation screening responsibility to qualified university-educated fitness professionals. The highest level of professional fitness qualification in Canada is the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology Certified Exercise Physiologist; the requirements for this certification are such that it could serve as a model allowing other countries that use the PAR-Q to develop similarly qualified university-educated fitness professionals who could also be entrusted with greater pre-participation screening responsibility.
Jamnik
Veronica K
VK
School of Kinesiology and Health Science, Faculty of Health, York University, Room 355, Bethune College, 4700 Keele Street, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3. ronij@yorku.ca
Gledhill
Norman
N
Shephard
Roy J
RJ
D002170:Canada; D002568:Certification; D017079:Exercise Tolerance / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D010809:Physical Fitness / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D010827:Physiology / Q000592:standards*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires