Irish Basketball Players: Current Practices, Attitudes, Barriers, and Facilitators to Injury Prevention

While injury prevention programmes have been found to be beneficial in basketball players, no research has examined their use and injury prevention perceptions in Irish basketball players. Therefore, this study aimed to establish current injury prevention practices, and attitudes, barriers, and facilitators to implementation among Irish adult and adolescent basketball players. It further aimed to examine gender and age differences in injury prevention practices and attitudes. An anonymous survey was completed by 387 adult (n = 259, 28.0 ± 11.7 years) and adolescent (n = 128, 14.4 ± 1.4 years) current Irish basketball players. The survey examined demographics, current injury prevention practices, attitudes towards injury and injury prevention, and barriers and facilitators towards injury prevention implementation. Chi-square tests and a Mann-Whitney U test examined differences for age and gender. Players displayed positive attitudes towards injury prevention, especially adolescent players (p < 0.001, r = –0.23). While some elements of an injury prevention programme were implemented, just 12.2% of players completed a formal injury prevention programme. No gender differences in use were observed (p > 0.05). Over half of players believed their team did not have someone with the skills/knowledge to deliver an injury prevention programme. Participants strongly agreed/agreed that better resources (84.8%), more training in the delivery (77.3%) and incorporating ball/skills (73.5%) were important facilitators. To enhance injury prevention adoption and implementation in the Irish basketball community, an injury prevention strategy that incorporates a basketball specific injury prevention programme should be developed, and widely shared among members. Embedding how to implement the injury prevention programme within the coaching education pathway is also recommended.