Construction of a behaviour log for adhering to the rehabilitation of sports injuries

Abstract

This study aimed to design and validate an instrument to validly and reliably measure injured athletes’ level of adherence to a rehabilitation programme. First, the content was validated through the consensus and agreement of ten expert judges. Second, two physical therapists applied the evaluation instrument to a sample of 32 injured, senior-category federated athletes in various disciplines (test-retest). In relation to injury type, the inclusion criteria for the study were: recent injuries (occurring in the two days preceding the first visit to the health centre), new (not relapses or repeat incidences) and medically diagnosed as moderate or severe. The results showed that the Scale of Adherence to Rehabilitation (EAR) has optimal levels of reliability and validity for recording the level of adherence to prescribed rehabilitation programmes for injured athletes.