Equity In Practice: Para Sport Healthcare Providers’ Perspectives On The Concussion Continuum Of Care

Para sport includes diverse athletes with various impairment classifications. The current sport concussion guidelines lack appropriate considerations for para athletes, which creates barriers for healthcare providers and warrants further investigation. PURPOSE:Determine healthcare providers’ perceptions of care for para sport athletes with concussions. METHODS:As part of a larger study, 11 para sport healthcare providers (female = 10, male = 1; experience = 9 ± 6 years) from 13 different sports (e.g., para ice hockey, alpine, swimming) completed semistructured, video recorded, virtual interviews where they shared their experiences managing para sport athlete concussions using a validated interview guide. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using an inductive approach. We secured trustworthiness of the qualitative data via multianalyst triangulation and peer review. RESULTS:Four main themes were identified:1) intentional flexibility, 2) classification-based protocols, 3) building personal relationships, and 4) multidisciplinary care. Para sport healthcare providers noted the importance of intentional flexibility when providing care to account for individual para sport athlete needs. Clinicians recognized classification-based protocols for para sport athletes to facilitate patient-centered concussion healthcare. Building personal relationships with athletes was key to determining whether reported signs and symptoms were due to concussion or related to pre-existing impairments (e.g., visual impairments). Multidisciplinary care was noted to be critical for successful management as the level of care varies widely across para sports due to limited clinical education, access to resources, and funding available for providers who are often volunteers. CONCLUSIONS:Para sport healthcare providers emphasized the importance of regular interpersonal interactions and using a flexible, individualized approach with a multidisciplinary team to provide optimal care for para sport athletes experiencing concussions. Educational opportunities should be provided for practitioners to become literate in para sport medicine to maximize care provision. Future efforts should be focused on investing resources to facilitate optimal and equitable care for para sport athletes. Supported by: Schewel Student-Faculty Research Fund - data collection, travel, lodging; University of Lynchburg Undergraduate Research Fund - conference registration, transportation, meals