Well done to Paul for the recent update on the sports trauma management course through Lubas Medical. Paul said it was a ‘great course’ and good to update previous training.
Fiona at the Paralympics in Norway
Fiona at the beginning of 2022, headed to Lillehammer in Norway, to help support the New Zealand Paralympic athletes’ take on the World Para Snow Sports Championships!
She had an amazing time and since returning she’s reflected on how influential the experience was for her main 3 reflections from the trip were…….
💭 Keep challenging yourself to optimise performance, it was motivating to see people with reduced muscle control working so hard to maximise the function of each muscle fibre and neuron
💭 With a bit of creativity and a strong network anyone can partake and even excel in sport. Excited to see this in action when the Healing Waves-Ocean Therapy Jersey adaptive surf center is up and running
💭 If you fall down, dust the snow off and get back on it!! The resilience and robustness of these athletes to keep achieving in the face of challenges are unforgettable!
Jersey Gorilla Quiz Night
One cold night in November we entered ourselves as the “Rehab Rockstars” into the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust & Jersey Zoo quiz night, organised by the amazing Will Highfield, aka Jersey Gorilla.
This fundraising event, had us testing our team’s brain power and knowledge with some difficult questions!📝⌛ All good fun in aid to support and raise funds for a great charity!
Do you think we picked a winning raffle ticket!?😂
Support: https://linktr.ee/Jerseygorilla
#jerseygorilla | #conservationisamarathon
Fiona at the Super League Triathlon
Fiona was a fantastic support to the medical team as the Super League Triathlon headed to Jersey for the fourth time.
Jersey is a firm favourite on the Super League calendar, with many of the athletes describing it as their favourite race location in the world!
Ports of Jersey Runway Challenge
One rainy Saturday at the end of July as a team put on or rain jackets and completed one of the Ports of Jersey Runway Challenge 21 by walking the distance of our own Jersey Runway!
For 2021 this event was a ‘virtual’ one where you chose a route equivalent to the length of Jersey’s runway and walked from Greve to Plemont coastal route finished off by coffee, cake and eventually the sun came out for a swim!
We were proud to have contributed towards awesome Healing Waves – Ocean Therapy in Jersey who enable individuals with physical, neurological & mental health challenges to access the ocean in a safe way, to participate in surf, paddle and flowrider sessions 
We were thrilled to have since won some SUP sessions and a chance to run or walk our ‘actual’ Jersey runway sometime this year, look out for further new and pictures of this!
Our Responsibilities
Did you know as Chartered Physiotherapists we are governed not only by the Health and Care Professions Council, but also the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists and the Jersey Care Commission?
These bodies hold us to very high standards of professionalism and care.
In order to provide the best possible care to you and help you reach your dreams, we always…
Maintain the highest standards of professionalism, this means we treat others with honesty, integrity and respect.
Remain accountable to our decisions and communicate with transparency in the event of error or complaint.
Understand and prioritise your needs, making sure we are always working towards your goals and treating your wellbeing as our top priority.
Respect your rights, cultural differences, dignity, privacy and preferences.
Act in an open and welcoming manner, challenging discrimination wherever necessary.
Communicate with openness and honesty, always providing you with the most accurate information available to us.
Keep your information and our records secure and confidential, complying with GDPR and local regulations.
Act within our abilities, where appropriate recommending other professionals who may be better suited to helping you with your problem.
Stay on top of research developments and always provide the most up to date, evidence informed care possible.
Reflect critically on our own practice and conduct, implementing changes whenever we identify room for improvement.
Welcome feedback and use it to better ourselves and the service we provide, this is why you may be contacted during or following your treatment requesting honest feedback of the care you received.
And for all of our wonderful athletes, we are also held accountable to the International Federation of Sports Physical Therapy code of ethics.
This means we promise to…
Appreciate the physical, mental and emotional demands of training and competition
Promote your health and recognise athlete-specific issues which jeopardise this, including age-related issues for younger athletes
Never put competition, profit or performance above your health and wellbeing
Always maintain confidentiality and gain your consent before discussing issues with coaching staff, parents or other stakeholders
Treat injury prevention as our top priority
Work effectively with other members of the multidisciplinary team such as psychologists and sport and exercise medics to achieve the best outcome, referring onwards when necessary
Remain vigilant to signs of doping and always act in accordance with UK Anti-Doping, International Olympic Committee and the World Anti-Doping Agency rules and regulations
Eco Active
Here at Performance Physiotherapy, our awareness and strive to become more environmentally friendly is close to our hearts and very important to us!
We’ve recently become an Eco Active business member which we are super excited to be part of this great journey and have been actively making and planning our first steps to become greener in our practice.
https://www.gov.je/environment/ecoactive/ecoactivebusinessnetwork/Pages/index.aspx
Our Goals
Getting together as a team we are looking at our aims for this year, working out our initial steps, some of which we are pleased to say we have already started!
🌍 Greener travel to & from work
🌍 Offset carbon emissions produced
🌍 Reduce plastics and to become a member of Plastic Free Jersey
🌍 Reduce waste in clinic, where possible recycling
🌍 Source suppliers and change products where possible to greener alternatives
Team Beach clean
Recently one windy Saturday afternoon we all went on a mission as a team down to Quaisne to collect some of the micro-plastics that inundate the top wall. Arriving armed with an awesome beach cleaning kit available from Plastic Free Jersey, which if you are planning to do a beach clean up just give them a call, it was awesome to have all the kit to do the cleaning!
Starting in the car park area, collecting too many cigarette butts and pieces of rubbish we moved along the top towards the far end, where there is an array of colourful plastics, they look pretty however they are not!
Feeling like an effortless task at first with so many small bits of plastic and nurdles surrounding us, many comments passed of “Are we making any difference?!” However, we measured our efforts to see how much a clean up to one area looks like, using a cool grid device, the impact was amazing! Within just 20 minutes of collection, you can see the effect on one area!
After a couple of hours collection, calling it a day were pleased with our efforts having fun whilst doing it! A great team effort including Jack & Stellan who came along to help too, well done guys in finding the plastic toy soldier!
We all enjoyed doing this small part to help keep our environment clean, came away with a sense of feeling to try to be more aware of how much plastic we all buy and use. Our quote for the day became “Even the small changes can make a difference”
Plastic Free
Already got rid of the water machine with the horrid plastic disposable cups! We set ourselves a challenge on April 22nd,World Earth Day to reduce our plastic waste for lunches. For one month each of us only bring lunches in using tubs we already have at home and any drinks in reusable bottles. We are super positive about this change and since we started the challenge we have continued with this plastic free lunch mission!
Staff meetings coffees in disposable cups have become a bad habit of the past, we have switched to using our cool refillable bamboo mugs!
We have started taking the first steps to become a member of Plastic Free Jersey, an awesome organisation and give great advice on how to reduce and omit plastics, click on the link to find out what they do and how to support them! https://www.plasticfreejersey.com/
Greener Travel plans
One of the easiest ways to be more environmentally friendly with travelling to and from work is to walk or cycle. Not only greener but a healthy option too! We have started walking to work and cycling more, so much easier now that the weather has gotten better!
It is unavoidable to use the car sometimes so we have made a decision to offset any carbon emissions created by us this year to worthy organisations. Watch out for further news on this!
Return to Play #6: Countering Concussion
Throughout our #ReturntoPlay blog series we’ve been looking at evidence-based ways to reduce injury risk when going back to sport following the lockdown.
So what are we talking about this week?
For this final entry we’re looking at what’s out there on how to reduce your risk of concussion. Unfortunately, there’s no sign of collision sports (like rugby) or combat sports (like judo) restarting any time soon, but it’s best to get ahead of the game with our simple tips so you’re in the best condition possible when you get your boots back on & return to the pitch, or put your gi on & return to the mat!
What can I do about it?
The good news is that we know keeping a strong neck helps to reduce your risk of suffering from concussion (Collins et al., 2014; Eckner et al., 2018). You should start with these simple isometric (not moving) exercises and progress to isotonic (with movement) exercises when you feel ready.
Let’s start by completing these 3 super simple exercises daily…
Forward press
Try to nod your head down & resisting this movement with your palm.
Hold this for 5 seconds then relax.
Side press
Press your head to the side into your hand. Repeat on the other side.
Hold this for 5 seconds then relax.
Backward press
Try to tilt your head back & look up, resist this movement with your hands.
Hold this for 5 seconds then relax.
What if I’m concussed? How do I know?
As sports physiotherapists, if we suggest a player is concussed when playing sport we would look for any signs or symptoms, check the player is orientated in time & place and can remember the game clearly. We would also ask 5 simple questions which someone without concussion would know easily, but someone concussed might struggle with.
Here is the list of symptoms we look for in concussion.
If you have any, or a combination of these symptoms following an accident or hitting your head– contact your GP, or Jersey Sports Medicine or if you are very concerned or your condition is worsening then attend A&E. Once your doctor has diagnosed concussion then we can help you through the return to play process.
Remember- you don’t need to hit your head or be knocked out in order to have a concussion, it can also happen from a whiplash type injury where the head is jolted backwards & forwards or where your head quickly decelerates for example a rugby tackle or landing from a fall.
Will I recover from my concussion?
We can help you through the recovery process. This is a step-by-step process which starts with gentle exercise and normally lasts around 1-2 weeks, then once you’re back to playing your sport and feeling good, you don’t need to worry about it.
During this process people with concussion often tell us they just ‘don’t feel themselves’, it can be common to feel uneasy, anxious or down, this is normal & will improve!
What’s important is that you get informed advice on how to return to your life and sport safely to avoid prolonging the process, suffering from a second concussion or risking a bodily injury like an ankle sprain.
The bottom line is concussion is common, can be managed easily with the right advice and you can reduce your risk of suffering from it by building a strong neck!
Blog Post by…
Fiona Robertson
BSc(Hons) Physiotherapy MCSP
Return to Play #5: Joyful Joints
Throughout our Return to Play blog series we have explored evidence–based ways to prevent injury in specific body parts, such as avoiding ACL injury or groin strain. If you’re just looking to keep your joints strong and avoid aches and pains then this is the blog for you!
There is an age old myth that running is bad for you- some say it wears out your knees and hips or is bad for your back. The good news is there’s new evidence to say that not only is running not bad for your knees- but it can actually improve damage to the joint.
This study took middle aged non–runners took an MRI scan of their knees, they then completed a four month training program, ran a marathon then MRI scanned their knees again. Of the participants who had a degree of damage to their knee joints before the training program… following the marathon many of them were improved! In addition, most of their BMI’s had reduced and there was no change to their meniscal cartilage damage.
Another study which looked at the presence of arthritis in both hips and knee joints in active marathon runners showed less hip and knee arthritis in the runners than the general population- woohoo!
So the message seems to be…
-> if you are already running; then take confidence that you are keeping your joints healthy,
-> if you are not running because you’re afraid of damaging your joints; now you have seen the evidence- why not give it a go?
We recommend starting with a gradual program like Couch to 5k. This programme is gradual enough to avoid injury in most cases, but if you struggle with it then give us a shout. Or if you want to get involved in running in a really fun environment then see our ultra-marathon-smashing, incredibly inspirational friend James Manners at Traction Running & Fitness for some incredible run coaching! He’ll have you fighting fit in no time.
For all runners we recommend strength training once or twice a week, see our suggestions for getting started in the infographic below. Paul & I had a discussion on our top tips for runners (old & new) and answered common questions on a recent Facebook live – check it out!
Blog Post by…
Fiona Robertson
BSc(Hons) Physiotherapy MCSP
Return to Play #4: Neat Knees
Doing a few stretches is enough to warm up before my football game, isn’t it?
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news- unfortunately not!!
The purpose of a warm–up is to prepare your body for the demands of the sport ahead- get your heart pumping harder, breathing quicker, muscles warmed up & get your head in the game! The other important purpose- the one that we physiotherapists care most about- is that warm-ups should prevent injury!!
In order to do this we need to do different movements which replicate the challenges of the game ahead. We have been looking at loads of different evidence-based ideas to prevent injury, check the other blogs out here.
Where do I start?
A clever bunch of international researchers have devised an excellent warm-up protocol which has been proven to reduce the risk of injury significantly. This protocol is called the Fifa 11+ and it is a 20 minute programme with 3 different stages- compiling of running drills, strength and balance exercises. The only thing you have to think about is making sure your knee is aligned with your foot- see the diagram at the bottom of the poster.
All you must do is complete the warm-up twice weekly and it can reduce injury rates up to a massive 40% – how great are those odds?
It has been shown to reduce risk of many different injuries, including knee, ankle and hamstring injuries- though most impressively it is very effective in reducing risk of the dreaded ACL injury.
Here’s a poster of the exercises to complete- Part 2 is split into 3 categories so there’s an option for everyone’s ability.
Who should do the warm–up?
Everyone who plays team sports– football, netball, rugby, hockey, volleyball…
Anyone who plays individual sports which incorporate changing direction- tennis, squash, badminton…
Even if you don’t take part in team sports these exercises will still help you to improve strength, balance & co-ordination. Most of all they will help you to stay in good condition & stave off injury!
I don’t have 20 minutes before football training!
No problem- there is a cool study (Whalan et al., 2019) in which half did the full Fifa 11+ warm-up before training, and the other half did the running exercises before training and completed the strength exercises after training. The good news is there was no difference between the 2 groups so you can do whatever’s most convenient for you- and we love convenience! 😀
Sound pretty good?
It’s awesome! Get your whole team on it- or ask your coach if they can introduce it to your training night. Effective warm-ups mean less injuries-> which means your A-team can keep playing all season long-> which means more fun and more wins! We all love taking part, but winning is best, so get started with the Fifa 11+ now!
Blog Post by…
Fiona Robertson
BSc(Hons) Physiotherapy MCSP
