Mental health is a very important pillar of health, and one that requires particular attention in elite athletes. This week, a discussion of surveillance strategies and tools for athletes via the International Olympic Committee (IOC) consensus statement.
Mental health symptoms are common in elite and professional athletes, with some (ex. disordered eating) exceeding the prevalence rates of non-athletes. Mental health symptoms and disorders can occur as a consequence of generic (i.e. “regular” adverse life events”) or sport-specific (i.e. travel, decreased performance, injury, or transitioning out of sport) factors. Elite athletes exhibit higher stigma with respect to mental health than the general population and tend to withhold disclosure of mental health symptoms. This tendency, coupled with the prevalence of mental health symptoms in elite athletes warrants the use of routine surveillance to attempt to ensure that affected or at-risk athletes are identified and provided with care as early as possible.
Establishing and normalizing mental health surveillance as an integrated part of an athlete’s routine health assessment has the potential to reduce stigma, improve mental health literacy and help-seeking, contribute to greater psychological safety (8) and generate preventive effects by identifying mental health concerns at an earlier stage when they are easier to resolve.
This paper aimed to supplement the International Olympic Committee Consensus Statement on injury and illness in sport by standardizing the surveillance methodology for mental health symptoms and disorders amongst athletes.
RESEARCH REVIEW: Mental Health Surveillance in Athletes – IOC Consensus Statement
This paper was published in BJSM (2023).
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