Physical Activity Content Development Project

Description [edit | edit source]

This project aims to develop content for the Physical Activity (PA) section in Physiopedia. This content will also be used to update the Physical Activity course that is part of our free Global Health Programme. 

We intend to populate the site with practical, credible and thought-provoking information on all aspects of Physical Activity, what the effects of PA are and what we can each do to promote PA in our communities. 

Anyone is welcome to join in this project. You will be joining people from all over the world in contributing evidence based articles to create an evidence based reference on Physical Activity. In return for your efforts you will receive a certificate of completion to help you evidence your learning through your involvement with this project.

Project Team [edit | edit source]

Team Lead   [edit | edit source]

Wendy Walker

Contributors [edit | edit source]

Project Dates [edit | edit source]

September 2016 - ongoing

Introduction [edit | edit source]

As a participant in this project you will contribute to the creation (or update an existing) page within Physiopedia. You may choose to take part in this project as a personal contribution to your own professional development and/or you may wish to contribute evidence based information to develop this resource for our profession. Your contribution will be reviewed by the Physiopedia team and once complete recognised by the award of a certificate of completion.

If you would like to take part in this project please follow the instructions below.

If you have any questions, please do email us

Instructions[edit | edit source]

  1. Choose an article from the list below that you would like to develop. Be sure that the article doesn't already have a name next to it.
  2. At this point you should email Rachael (co-founder and Executive Director of Physiopedia) to let her know that you would like to join the project and which page you would like to work on. Please feel free also to ask any questions that you have in relation to this project e.g. if you feel a new page needs adding to the list.
  3. You will receive an email from Wendy Walker (the project co-ordinator) to confirm you participation in the project and also to confirm the page that you will develop.
  4. Once you have received this confirmation you are free to get on with working on your page. You should be complete your work in a word (or similar) document See example .  If you are comfortable working in Physiopedia we are very happy for you to work directly in Physiopedia instead of producing a word document. (See content criteria below).
  5. If you would like a certificate to evidence your contribution (with PP+ points, our equivalent to CEUs) - we would like you to think about your own personal learning outcomes as a result of taking part in this project. These learning outcomes will be printed on your certificate.
  6. Once you have completed your article and (if you wish to have a certificate) listed your learning outcomes please email them to project co-ordinator.
  7. Your article will be reviewed by the project team and you will be emailed a response of approval or of amendments to be made.
  8. Once the article has been finally approved, it will be published and you will receive your certificate of completion.

If you have any questions please do email us.

Content criteria The content of your article must include:

  • Evidence (where appropriate and possible)
  • References
  • Images and videos
  • A list of open online resources that we can link to

Example content

CPD/CE Certification[edit | edit source]

The authors of all articles that are published will be offered a completion certificate to prove their learning and professional development through participation in this project. 

Articles[edit | edit source]

  1. Physical Activity (Anna Lowe - complete)
  2. Exercise physiology (Nadja Thoner - complete)
  3. Benefits of physical activity (Wendy Walker - complete)
  4. Global issues around physical activity (Karen Wilson - ready for review)
  5. Physical activity in young people (Michelle Warren - complete)
  6. Physical activity in older adults (Caroline Greenwood - complete)
  7. Physical activity in individuals with disability (Clara Hildt - complete)
  8. Physical activity in low and middle income countries (Clara Hildt - complete)
  9. Physical activity in high income countries (Clara Hildt - complete)
  10. Physical activity and non-communicable diseases (Chalchisa Abdeta - complete)
  11. Physical activity pre and post surgery (Wendy Walker - to be expanded by Bridget Ward)
  12. Physical activity and pregnancy (Mariam Mohana - complete)
  13. Physical activity in long term musculoskeletal conditions (Caroline Hooper - complete)
  14. Physical activity in neurological conditions (Mariam Mohana - complete)
  15. Physical activity and mental health (Rebecca Wilson - complete)
  16. Physical activity and Respiratory Conditions (Mariam Mohana - complete)
  17. Physical activity and cardiovascular disease (Nadja Thoner - complete)
  18. Physical activity in diabetes (Mariam Mohana)
  19. Physical activity in acute care (Karen Wilson - complete)
  20. Physical activity in cancer (Samara Paull - complete)
  21. Physical activity and men (Karen Ilona Malkauskaite [per comments on slack])
  22. Physical activity promotion in your clinic (Wendy Walker - complete)
  23. Physical activity promotion in the community (Karen Wilson- complete)
  24. Social determinants of physical inactivity (Aleja Salando)
  25. Whole systems approach to increasing physical activity (Ilona Malkauskaite - complete)
  26. Behaviour change (Nadja Thoner - complete)
  27. The physical therapist’s role in physical activity promotion (Wendy Walker)
  28. Tackling Physical Inactivity: A Resource for Raising Awareness in Physiotherapists (complete)
  29. Physical activity and the multidisciplinary team (Uchechukwu Chuwuemeka)
  30. Brief interventions for physical activity (Vidya Acharya)
  31. Promoting adherence to physical activity advice (Eki Tunjungsari - complete)
  32. Physical Activity and Outcome Measures (see template) (Temitope Ojelade - complete)
  33. Physical activity and women  (Night Atwongyeire - complete)
  34. Barriers to Physical Activity (Rachael Lowe - complete)
  35. Evaluating Physical Activity (Anna Lowe - complete)
  36. Physical Activity and Technology (Anna Lowe & Mariam Mohana - complete)
  37. Physical Activity and the Built Environment (Simisola Ajeyalemi - complete)
  38. Stroke: the Role of Physical Activity (complete)
  39. Public Health and Physical Activity (complete)
  40. The Physical Therapist's Role in Physical Activity Promotion (Wendy Walker - complete)
  41. Physical activity in [a condition that you choose]

Tips [edit | edit source]

Physiopedia is an online resource that provides evidence based, critically reviewed information that is used by nearly 500,000 people every month across the world. It is a collaboratively developed project that is contributed to by physiotherapists from all over the world.  The project has standards of writing that articles must adhere to in order to be published. As a collaborative activity, please do not feel dis-heartened if others make suggests or contributions to your articles over time, it helps maintain relevance and shares learning, it is not a criticism of you personally.

With all this in mind here are 4 pieces of advice that we hope will give you some confidence about creating a Physiopedia article that will be valuable to physiotherapists all over the world!

  1. Look around Physiopedia and work out what articles/pages you like and are more/less likely to engage with. Think about why this is. Is it about the title, the first sentence, layout, use of pictures/videos/presentations or something else?
  2. Have a look at the article: What makes a good Physiopedia page 
  3. Be mindful to reference your work and use quotation marks when appropriate. Plagiarism is not good academic practice. 
  4. The article should be, wherever possible factual, not a piece to direct readers into one conclusion or another. Therefore adopt a neutral tone and voice and present other peoples arguments/references/facts and figures from all perspectives, leaving the final decision to the reader.
  5. A word on word count. This is for you to determine as is most appropriate for your topic and approach. Ideally not a 500 word summary of a topic, but equally not a 3000 essay. Use hyperlinks to other related Physiopedia pages and information sources tactically to help manage your word count and avoid avoid long winded explanations and signpost readers to more information/background reading. Keep in your mind the situation readers are likely to be in when accessing your information - a quick reference point for sit down with a cuppa?  Aim to produce an article that critically introduces the key topics/ideas/themes relating to the article title. Use links and signposting to send interested readers to other sources and Physiopedia pages for more details....or, if you want to include a lot of detail about one specific element of your article, think about creating a separate page for it and contact the Rachael with your idea. Consider your article to be somewhere a therapist wanting to get a critical introduction to the topic might start their search.

Finally remember this project is about collaboration and harnessing of knowledge, so tap into your colleagues knowledge, skills - editing/proof reading, references and learn as you go together! Could make an interesting in-service training session, or team building exercise!

Resources [edit | edit source]