SPT 1 (SPORTS PHYSIOTHERAPY POSTGRAD COURSE)
		SPT1 started in 2000. It was run by the Western Cape Sports Group of the South African Society of Physiotherapy (SASP) under the auspices of the South African National Sports Group. It was held again in the Western Cape in 2003 and 2005. Each time the course has been upgraded significantly in keeping with current scientific evidence on the management of sports injuries. On completion of the course one obtains a SASP National Sports Group Certificate either for attendance or an award certificate for passing the examinations. The examinations are open to all physiotherapists even if one has not completed / attended the course, as is the case with Orthopaedic Manipulative Therapy 1 Course (OMT1). The course planning and examination criteria have been based on the OMT1 course (135 hours).
The overall teaching aims of SPT 1 are to: 1. Develop competent physiotherapists who can practise safely and effectively in the field of sports physiotherapy at a level of a competent physiotherapist. 2. Augment candidates’ existing knowledge and skills in the field of sports physiotherapy. 3. Foster an attitude of life long learning. This course concentrates on the specific field and needs of current sports physiotherapy practice. It aims to give candidates current scientific evidence on managing the more commonly seen problems in athletes, and serves as an introduction to their further development in the field. Candidates attending the course, must attend 90% of the contact teaching time, hand in 4 assessments of individual patients seen in practice, and pass all 4 sections of the examination, namely: 1. A 3-hour theory paper 2. Half-hour practical examination of techniques 3. 1 and a half hour clinical examination (2 examiners) 4. A written case report (2 examiners) SPT1 2007 will be run under the auspices of the SASP National Sports Group in the Western Cape. International recognition in the form of a diploma or certificate is to applied for through the International Federation of Sports Medicine (FIMS). At present SPT1 course content consists of 75% of one year of the three year M.Phil Sports physiotherapy degree from UCT. SPT1 2008 is hopefully to be started in Johannesburg alternating with SPT1 in Cape Town. Other provinces, namely Kwa- Zulu Natal and FreeState have requested to run SPT1 course. This may certainly be considered in future provided the pre-requisites for the course content and qualifications of 90% of the lecturers is a PhD, MD, MBchB, MSc, MPhil, or similar equivalent. It may be introduced one province at a time. Provinces wishing to run the SPT1 course would be wise to develop a Provincial Sports Group (special interest group) possibly starting with interested / existing members and helpers at sport events, meeting a few times per year with interesting speakers. In this way, sharing evidence based knowledge in the management of sports injuries can be shared amongst professions and allow for further growth within our professions. Our aim is to use the profit made from SPT1 to subsidise financially disadvantaged students for further education in sports physiotherapy. All physiotherapists who are interested in this dynamic course in 2008 in Gauteng or Kwazulu Natal,please contact Michelle Swart on michelleswart@panacea.co.za  for application details.