Health Risks and Injuries on Sport and Recreation Activity - Case Study Example

Walk Тhrоugh Survеy Fiеld Ехеrсisе Name Institution Activity: Sport and recreational activities Place of conduct of activity: Anytime Fitness This is a 24-hour fitness club in Australia providing fitness facilities Description and justification of the survey It is necessary to survey sport and recreation activity because this is one of the major activities helping in the promotion of human wellness and the enhancement of lifelong skills based on the number of sports conducted. Besides, the activity is widely conducted in the sports clubs. From the fact that this activity is done in sensitive places and using equipment that might harm or cause injuries to the users, this makes it worth to survey the particular activity. This activity mainly involves the players or those seeking to engage in the diverse physical activities and the management of the clubs as well as the supporting staff such as the cleaners (Backe, Janson, & Timpka, 2012). The management team and their subordinate work towards the maintenance of the equipment, facilitation of different activities going on in the sports club, and maintenance activities. On the other hand, the players and those going for exercises in the club use the present equipment to conduct their physical exercises. Thus, this activity is worth surveying because of the related harms, health risks, and injuries that have ever been sustained by the exposed individuals. The associated hazards and exposure profile of the people involved Based on the practices associated with sport and recreation activities, there are hazards experienced by majorly the players and those visiting the club. On the other hand, the management team and their subordinates are likely to be affected by the specific hazards. The main hazards connected with the sports and recreation activities conducted in this club comprise of; wet surface, spilling of chemical around the playing area, broken equipment, and falling objects in the exercise room. Other risks associated with these activities are; crushing of weights and objects, hitting of the wall or equipment that is hard beyond one’s tolerance, and moving objects. These hazards have different levels of harm that is caused to the victims. For instance, wet floor might cause major injury and breaking of the bones to the victims. In addition, it is possible for a player to fall on the wet surface and break the held object or equipment, therefore being hit by the particular object or equipment as well (Dowdell, 2011). It is widely noticed that in the case of broken objects or equipment, this might lead to fall and breaking of the body parts while using the specific equipment to conduct the exercise. Moreover, if some chemical tend to spill on the surface or near the working location, the effect might be major to human health especially if the chemical is poisonous and likely to destroy a person’s body functionality. Falling of the objects might result to the death and major injury to the victim because majority of the objects and weights in the sports club are heavy and hard. The harmfulness of the identified hazards is serious to human health especially to the players who are exposed to the activity for many hours. The fall of the objects, weights, and equipment might lead to breaking of the bones, thus making the victim to develop some disability. This includes falling and injuring the spinal cord, which makes the victim dependent to other people for the operation of daily and personal activities. Moreover, exposure to hazardous chemicals is possible to cause harm to human respiratory organs. If a person happens to be caught by equipment or object in the sports club, one might have more minor injuries especially on the skin, as well as the possibility of being crushed on the body parts in such a situation. Another health risk that might be associated with the particular hazards is that of being hit on the head leading to psychological and mental effect to the victim especially from the falling objects and equipment. Besides, falling and hitting the head is likely to lead to feeling of foggy and dizzy, therefore making a victim to sustain a concussion. The other health risk is the issue of blood clotting because of being hit by an object or equipment, hitting the wall, or falling on the surface. Another danger experienced by the individuals exposed to the hazards in the sports club is skin rashes and respiratory destruction resulting from being highly exposed to the toxins and allergens. Therefore the sports and recreational activities conducted in the ‘Anytime Fitness’ leads to serious hazards causing sprains, strains, bruises, abrasions, cuts, rashes, fractures breaking of the body parts, and other injuries that influence human health. These health risks are serious because they can influence the entire health and functionality of the involved individuals. Some of the health risks are dangerous to a level that they might lead to the death of the victim, paralysis, or life-time disability. The specific harms are highly likely to occur especially because of the carelessness of the responsible parties, such as instructors, cleaners, activity guides, and the ones responsible for the management and maintenance of the equipment and objects in the sports club. In addition, because of the period of the usage of the particular equipment whereby they start tearing and wearing, this might increase the possibility of the occurrence of the harm to the ones exposed to the hazardous tools and objects. In the case of lack of committed management in the sports club, it is highly likely for individuals to experience such health risks. This is because the club might be having some equipment that need to be replaced but the managers fail to take the right steps. In addition, the playing situation might be unfriendly for the victims because of being exposed to harmful chemicals in the sports club (Dowdell, 2011). Hence, the likelihood of occurrence of the particular hazards and harms is very high and based on failure of the responsible parties in taking the appropriate precautions. Moreover, failure of the involved parties to be held liable for their negligence and carelessness might lead to the recurring occurrence of the specific harms and injuries to the parties in exposure to the equipment and objects in this sports club. Measures in place for the mitigation of the exposure/risk and the effectiveness/ limitations of the measures There are numerous measures that are supposed to be taken in consideration for the mitigation of the threat associated with the sports and recreational activities taking place in ‘Anytime Fitness club in Australia.’ Based on the research, the most effective courses of actions that can be conducted in handling and preventing harms resulting from the particular activity comprise of; physical assessment of all the parties entering in the sports club. This would help in the identification of those suffering from problems that might lead to their easy falling on the floor, therefore preventing the possibility of more harm as a result of falls. Besides, some individuals have health problems that might limit them from taking part in specific programs. It also requires the management to ensure that the recreational facilities and sports are efficient the people trying to use the specific equipment (Pons-Villanueva, Seguí-Gómez, & Martínez-González, 2010). Furthermore, all the activities conducted in the sports club are supposed to be supervised and guided by a trained and experience professional who is able to follow the necessary game rules. This helps in being certain that are the necessary measures are taken when playing specific games or conducting particular physical exercises under instructions of a trained coach. As well, the ratio of the players and the supervisor should be appropriate based on the nature and type of the sport or games conducted in the club, as well as the particular equipment used for the game and the capability of the participants. Also, all the parties especially the management team is required to ensure that playing environments and surfaces are well-maintained. This means that the fields should be free from broken glasses, exposed sprinklers, holes, and tripping hazards. Moreover, it involves ensuring that all the objects and equipment are meeting the necessary standards as per the Australian sporting requirements (McIntosh, Andersen, Bahr, Greenwald, Kleiven, Turner, & McCrory, 2011). What is more is being fully equipped with the recommended clothing and protective materials such as knee pads, shin-guards, sports shoes, helmet, as well as sports clothing that fit efficiently with the body and not easily tangled or loosening. Additional, some sports require putting on of mouth-guards and having face protective equipment to prevent mouth, eyes, head, and face traumas. To ensure proper holding of the objects and equipment, one should ensure that they start by some warm-ups and stretching activities for proper exercising of the muscles and enhanced catching of the particular sporting materials. It is also vital to use signs and symbols in warning people about the possible hazards in the recreational and sporting area. There are widely set body governing regulations and they should be adhered to effectually for the protection of individuals’ bodies. Moreover, the equipment and present facilities are supposed to be inspected for any need for replacement, repair and in case of possible damage. This needs to be done through the development of an inspection schedule, inspection form, using the necessary maintenance and inspection tools, and working with well-trained inspectors. All the records regarding the inspection practices should be retained and the names of those involved in the conduct of inspection for reference in future. It is also essential to develop a plan for the follow-up of the condition of the equipment and facilities in the sports club. The inspection should aim at ensuring that no hazards are present and eliminating the possible hazards at the right time. In addition, all the damaged equipment should be removed and repaired or replaced accordingly. There should also be the practice of checking the objects for likely tear and wear. The sports club should have trained maintenance team to assist in the inspection and the conduct of activities necessary in the maintenance of equipment in good order. In addition, the floor and surface should be made in such a way that it can hardly become slippery even when it is wet. This requires the selection of the construction materials to be done with the consideration of their ability to enhance dryness or tenderness (Pons-Villanueva et al. 2010). Therefore, the floor and surface should be equipped with a material that cannot lead to breaking of the bones and body parts after the fall of an individual. Recommend risk management strategy In order to efficiently manage the identified risks, it is necessary to come up with the necessary strategies that would enhance the effectiveness of the solution. The very important strategy is ensuring that the playing environment is in good condition meaning that all the objects and equipment have to be in good shape, well repaired, and replaced in the case of some of them having been damaged (Backe, Janson, & Timpka, 2012). This will enable the sports club to save on the cost and acquire maximum benefit because working with equipment that are of the appropriate standard helps in preventing emergence expenses and other related costs. Besides, it will be of great advantage to the sports club because it will be able to retain its visitors and improve its reputation to the public for managing to offer the efficient care to the society members. It is essential for the sports club to offer efficient training to all the individuals working in the facility. This will include training the sports guides and coaches in order to enhance proper provision of support to all the club’s visitors (McIntosh et al. 2011). In addition, training of the staff will help the ‘Anytime Fitness’ to ensure that individuals engaging in diverse sports and recreational activities are doing so using the most appropriate equipment and have the capability of playing their desired games, as well as the ability to use the specific objects and equipment. This will be a very economical strategy and will allow the realization of the expected outcomes, since it will enable the sports club to reduce the probability of the occurrence of health risks of presence of hazards in the locality. Moreover, those engaging in exercises will be free from any likely threat because of operating under the guidance and supervision of qualified personnel. Proper investigation of the probable hazards and connected risks is more important in this sports club (Dowdell, 2011). The reason is that it will be possible for the club to ensure equipping the facility with the appropriate equipment and objects that will put subject the players and the staff to any danger. In addition, the sports club will be able to take the most appropriate precautions timely enough before the emergence of any hazards or threats. Therefore, Anytime Fitness will need to hire some regular investigators who will need to keep on monitoring the condition of the club’s facilities and the equipment and recommend for replacements and repair where necessary. Additionally, through prior investigation of any likely risk, this will help the club to eliminate the possible costs and health issues that might result from the occurrence of unnoticed risk. Hence, this strategy will even enable the sports club to plan well concerning what will be required in ensuring that the facility is in good order and free from probable hazards. It is also advisable for the Anytime Fittings sports club to take some insurance cover to protect against any hazards that might not be detected on time (Pons-Villanueva et al. 2010). Working with an insurance representative will help the sports club to meet all the costs that might be related to hazards and injury claims that occur accidentally in the club. References Backe, S., Janson, S., & Timpka, T. (2012). Governance and implementation of sports safety practices by municipal offices in Swedish communities. International journal of injury control and safety promotion, 19(2), 163-169. Dowdell, T. (2011). Is gymnastics a dangerous sport in the Australian club context. Science of Gymnastics Journal, 3 (2), 13-25. McIntosh, A. S., Andersen, T. E., Bahr, R., Greenwald, R., Kleiven, S., Turner, M., ... & McCrory, P. (2011). Sports helmets now and in the future. British journal of sports medicine, 45(16), 1258-1265. Pons-Villanueva, J., Seguí-Gómez, M., & Martínez-González, M. A. (2010). Risk of injury according to participation in specific physical activities: a 6-year follow-up of 14 356 participants of the SUN cohort. International journal of epidemiology, 39(2), 580-587. Websites Anytime Fitness; https://www.anytimefitness.com/ http://www.anytimefitnessgoshen.com/ https://www.anytimefitness.ph/ https://anytimefitness.my/ Read More