Are Sport and Exercise Science Students Receiving Enough Training to Adequately Design Exercise Programs for Patients with Cancer, Overweight, or Obesity in Spain? A Comprehensive Archival and Survey Analysis of 52 Spanish Universities

Abstract

Obesity and cancer are two of the most significant global public health concerns worldwide. Exercise in preventing and managing these diseases has become a prominent area of research, and BSc sport and exercise science (SES) graduates are among the professionals involved in designing exercise programs for these populations. The aims of the present study were (1) to quantify the number of teaching hours focused on exercise in patients with cancer or overweight/obesity and (2) to collect perceptions of SES teachers of whether these hours are enough to prescribe exercise to these populations adequately. An online survey was sent to 97 university teachers from 58 different institutions in Spain offering the sport and exercise sciences degree. The survey included questions designed to ascertain the number of hours lectured on the topics of exercise and cancer or overweight/obesity. Additionally, it aimed to gather teachers’ perceptions of how prepared students were to work with these populations. Seventy-six teachers (representing a 78% response rate) from 52 different centers (representing 88% of the centers) completed the survey. The teachers reported an average of 8.7 class hours dedicated to exercise and cancer and 17.1 class hours dedicated to exercise in patients with overweight/obesity. Teachers expressed low satisfaction with the number of class hours allocated to cancer education (2.2 points out of 5) and a neutral response regarding the allocation of hours to overweight/obesity (3.1 points out of 5). The findings of the current study suggest that Spanish SES students may be receiving a limited amount of instruction in the area of exercise prescription for patients with cancer and overweight/obesity. Although the curriculum is explicitly dedicated to training SES students, teachers believe that additional training in specific exercise prescription for people with cancer would enhance SES qualifications.

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