Perspectives of medical staff on the quality of communication with the head coach on injury management

Abstract

Communication has been established to be a central component if a team needs to function well. Regarding injury management, a high collaboration quality within a team has been said to contribute to a successful program. Accordingly, good communication quality between the head coach and the medical staff was rated to be the highest contributor to a good program. On the other hand, poor communication quality has been stated to hinder an athlete’s recovery. However, there were very few studies that looked into the communication between the medical staff and head coach on the management of injuries, especially in the context of Philippine sports. The purpose of this study was to examine the quality of communication between the medical staff and the head coach on injury management. The researcher utilized a qualitative research design with semi-structured interviews as the procedure for data collection. The participants of the study were four medical staff from two professional basketball teams in the Philippines-- two physiotherapists (PT) and two strength and conditioning coaches (SC). Thematic analysis was used to generate the themes. Results revealed six overarching themes: (1) constant communication of the medical staff, (2) factors influencing injury, (3) increasing player adherence, (4) continuous learning, (5) communication barriers, and (6) program evaluation. These themes indicated that although there were communication barriers, both medical staff and head coach worked together to maintain an athlete-centered approach within their coaching system. Medical staff expressed how they were pleased as head coaches displayed support, encouragement, engagement, and respect for their roles in the team. Overall, the medical staff was given the autonomy and freedom by the head coach to implement their preventive programs in order to mitigate injuries.