Physical Activity, Nutritional Habits, and Sleeping Behavior in Students and Employees of a Swiss University During the COVID-19 Lockdown Period: Questionnaire Survey Study

Background: The new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 led to the COVID-19 pandemic starting in January 2020. The Swiss Federal Council prescribed a lockdown of nonessential businesses. Students and employees of higher education institutions had to install home offices and participate in online lectures. Objective: The aim of this survey study was to evaluate lifestyle habits, such as physical activity (PA), sitting time, nutritional habits (expressed as median modified Mediterranean Diet Score mMDS), alcohol consumption habits, and sleeping behavior during a 2-month period of confinement and social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Survey participants were students and employees of a Swiss university of applied sciences. Methods: All students and employees from Bern University of Applied Sciences, Department of Health Professions (ie, nursing, nutrition and dietetics, midwifery, and physiotherapy divisions) were invited to complete an anonymous online survey during the COVID-19 confinement period. Information on the lifestyle dimensions of PA, sitting time, nutritional and alcohol consumption habits, and sleep behavior was gathered using adaptations of validated questionnaires. Frequency analyses and nonparametric statistical methods were used for data analysis. Significance was set at 5{\%} $\alpha$ level of error. Results: Prevalence of non-health-enhancing PA was 37.1{\%}, with participants of the division of physiotherapy showing the lowest prevalence. Prevalence of long sitting time (>8 hours/day) was 36.1{\%}. The median mMDS was 9, where the maximal score was 15, with participants of the division of nutrition and dietetics being more adherent to a Mediterranean diet as compared to the other groups. Prevalence of nonadherence to the Swiss alcohol consumption recommendations was 8.3{\%}. Prevalence of low sleeping quality was 44.7{\%}, while the median sleeping duration was 8 hours, which is considered healthy for adult populations. Conclusions: In the group analysis, differences in PA, sitting time, and mMDS were observed between different divisions of health professions as well as between Bachelor of Science students, Master of Science students, and employees. Therefore, public health messages regarding healthy lifestyle habits during home confinement should be more group specific. The results of this study may provide support for the implementation of group-specific health promotion interventions at universities in pandemic conditions. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04502108; https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT0450210

The Connection between Health Promotion, Prevention, and Psychosocial Health: An Innovative Action Model

The promotion of psychosocial health among individuals, groups, and society is becoming an increasingly important task and research topic in the field of public health. Psychosocial health is a complex interaction between the psyche of an individual and the social environment in which that individual lives. Promoting psychosocial health is often challenging and complex for health care professionals. Therefore, an important question of public health significance is: how can we address and improve the psychosocial health of individuals, groups, as well as society in general? An interdisciplinary team of specialists at the Department of Health Professions at the Bern University of Applied Sciences, Switzerland, focused on the connection between health promotion, prevention, and psychosocial health. This team newly defined these topics in relation to how they could be synergistically combined to promote psychosocial health. Additionally, they presented an action model to graphically depict their connection. The proposed action model is based upon already well-established concepts, models, frameworks in health promotion, and prevention practice. In a further step, they have depicted them in a way that clearly integrates and combines their core concepts for their practical application in promoting psychosocial health. As these topics are overlapping, their clear illustration is important in promoting their systematic and planned usage. This new and innovative approach encourages the systematic usage of health promotion and prevention for the promotion of psychosocial health. The next step would be the implementation and evaluation of this action model, especially the measurement of the outcome (psychosocial health). The integrative and intentional use of health promotion and prevention is an innovative approach for the promotion of psychosocial health in public health practice

Joints effects of BMI and smoking on mortality of all-causes, CVD, and cancer

Obesity, underweight, and smoking are associated with an increased mortality. We investigated the joint effects of body mass index and smoking on all-cause and cause-specific mortality. Data of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988–1994) including mortality follow-up until 2011 were used (n = 17,483). Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for all-cause, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and cancer mortality with BMI, smoking, and their combinations as exposure, stratified by sex. Normal weight never smokers were considered as reference group. Compared to normal weight never smokers, obese and underweight current smokers were the two combinations with the highest mortality from all-causes, CVD, and cancer. Among underweight current smokers, the HR of death from all-causes was 3.49 (95% CI 2.42–5.02) and for obese current smokers 2.76 (2.12–3.58). All-cause mortality was particularly high in women who were underweight and current smoker (3.88 [2.47–6.09]). CVD mortality risk was the highest among obese current smokers (3.33 [2.98–5.33]). Cancer mortality risk was the highest among underweight current smokers (5.28 [2.68–10.38]). Obese current smokers in the middle age group (between 40 and 59 years old) had the highest risk of all-cause mortality (4.48 [2.94–7.97]). No statistically significant interaction between BMI and smoking on all-cause and cause-specific mortality was found. The current study indicates that obesity and underweight in combination with smoking may emerge as a serious public health problem. Hence, public health messages should stress the increased mortality risk for smokers who are underweight or obese. Also, health messages regarding healthy lifestyle are aimed at maintaining a healthy body weight rather than just “losing weight” and at not starting smoking at all. Keywords NHANES III · Obesity · Underweight · Smoking · Mortalit

Injuries in the Martial Arts Judo, Taekwondo and Wrestling – A Systematic Review

Hintergrund: Kampfsportarten wie Judo, Taekwondo und Ringen sind reglementierte, in der Regel sportliche Zweikämpfe, bei denen es darum geht, entweder mehr Punkte zu erreichen als der Gegner, oder zu gewinnen. Wie in jeder anderen Sportart werden auch hier kleinere und größere Verletzungen beobachtet, was für den Sportler viele negative Konsequenzen haben kann. Zudem verursachen Sportverletzungen und deren Rehabilitation hohe Kosten für das Gesundheitssystem. Im Gegensatz zum FIFA 11 + Aufwärmprogramm, gibt es in diesen Kampfsportarten keine Präventivprogramme zur Verletzungsprophylaxe. Daher war das Ziel dieser Arbeit, den aktuellen Forschungsstand zusammenzufassen, um zu evaluieren, ob erste Empfehlungen für die Kampfsportarten Judo, Ringen und Taekwondo zur Reduktion der Verletzungen ausgesprochen werden können. Methoden: Um einen Überblick über den aktuellen Forschungsstand zu erhalten, wurden in den Datenbanken PEDro, PubMed, Cochrane sowie in der Internetsuchmaschine Google scholar nach Übersichtsarbeiten zu den drei Kampfsportarten Judo, Taekwondo und Ringen gesucht. Deren methodologische Qualität wurde mittels Critical Appraisal Tool for a Systematic Review (CASP) bewertet, sowie die Daten zu Verletzungsrisiken, Verletzungslokalisation und Verletzungstyp extrahiert. Ergebnisse: Es zeigte sich, dass alle drei untersuchten Übersichtsarbeiten eine niedrige bis mittlere methodologische Qualität aufweisen. Bei der Verletzungslokalisation wurde ersichtlich, dass in allen drei Kampfsportarten besonders die Extremitäten gefährdet sind. Als häufigster Verletzungstyp wurde der Erguss beobachtet. Schlussfolgerung: Aufgrund der mäßigen methodologischen Qualität und dem Verletzungstyps Erguss ist es nicht möglich, Empfehlungen zur Prävention von Verletzungen auszusprechen. Des Weiteren sollte an einer einheitlichen Definitionsbeschreibung von Sportverletzungen gearbeitet werden.Background: Martial arts such as judo, taekwondo and wrestling are regulated, usually athletic duels. The aim is to score better than your opponent or to win. As with any type of sport, athletes in martial arts sustain minor and major injuries, which may have many negative consequences. In addition, sports injuries and their rehabilitation generate high costs to the healthcare system. In contrast to the FIFA 11+ warm-up program, no preventive programs have been postulated for injury prevention in these martial arts. Therefore, the aim of this systematic review was to summarise the latest research findings and to evaluate whether initial recommendations can be given for the reduction of injuries in the martial arts judo, wrestling and taekwondo. Methods: To gain an overview of the latest research findings, we searched for systematic reviews in PEDro, PubMed, Cochrane and the internet search engine Google Scholar. The methodological quality of these reviews was assessed using the Critical Appraisal Tool for a Systematic Review (CASP), and data was extracted on the risk of injury, injury location and injury type. Results: It was found that all three review articles are of low to moderate methodological quality. Regarding injury location, it became evident that the extremities are particularly vulnerable to injury in all three martial arts. Effusion was observed to be the most common type of injury. Conclusion: Due to the moderate methodological quality and the injury type of effusion, it is not possible to formulate recommendations for injury prevention. Moreover, uniform definitions should be developed to describe sports injuries

Physical activity, nutritional habits and sleeping behavior in health professions students and employees of a Swiss University of Applied Sciences during and after the COVID-19 confinement period: A protocol for a questionnaire survey study

Background: A new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 led to the COVID-19 pandemic since January 2020. To block the transmission of the virus, the Swiss Federal Council decided for a lockdown of the non-essential businesses. Students and employees of institutions for higher education were informed to install home-office and online lectures. Objective: The aim of this longitudinal survey will be to evaluate lifestyle habits such as physical activity, nutritional habits and sleeping behavior 1) during a two months period of confinement and social distancing and 2) one year after the COVID-19 pandemic time period in students and employees of a Swiss University of Applied Sciences. Methods: This manuscript describes a protocol for a retrospective and prospective observational cohort study. Students and employees from the Bern University of Applied Sciences - Department of Health Professions (BFH-DHP) will be invited to complete an anonymous online survey during the COVID-19 confinement period, followed by a second survey scheduled one year after the lockdown. Information on the lifestyle dimensions physical activity, nutrition and sleep will be gathered using adaptations of validated questionnaires. Results: This is a longitudinal study with two time points of measurement. The first survey was carried out during the lockdown in April 2020 and the second in May 2021. The first survey has been carried out and the data of 823 participants will be evaluated. The results of the first survey are expected to be published in spring 2021. The results of the second survey are expected to be published in spring 2022. Discussion: This survey will give information about the impact of confinement during the COVID-19 crisis on physical activity, nutrition and sleep behavior in students and employees of BFH-DHP

Risk factor and symptoms of burnout in physiotherapists in the canton of Bern

Abstract Background Several studies have shown that the risk of burnout is high for people working in health professions. Many physiotherapists have either suffered from burn out personally or have seen colleagues suffer from it. In Switzerland, there is a lack of evidence concerning the risk factors and symptoms for burnout among physiotherapist. The aim of this study was to empirically identify risk factors and symptoms of burnout in physiotherapists working in the canton of Bern. Method Based on interview guidelines, three semi-structured interviews with physiotherapists who experienced burn out themselves were conducted. The questions were divided into two main categories: risk factors and symptoms. For analysis, the interviews were transcribed and assigned to individual categories. Results High personal expectations and the pressure that comes with working on patients with chronic complaints were the most common answers from the participants. In this study these factors can be considered as important risk factors. In particular, emotional exhaustion and depression seem to be relevant burnout symptoms which lead to a decrease in personal performance. Conclusion In this study physiotherapists with burn out working in an acute care hospital tend to suffer from symptoms of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. For physiotherapists, sensitization to symptoms and risk factors of burnout is essential in daily work as well as in education. The results of this study might be of interest for physiotherapist or physiotherapists students to prevent and sensitive them for burnout symptoms

Durabilité dans la formation

Dans son agenda 2023 (EPT-Agenda 2023), l’Environmental Physiotherapy Association (EPA) demande l’intégration de la durabilité dans la formation des étudiant-e-s. Plusieurs hautes écoles spécialisées suisses ont déjà pris des mesures