Author Identifier (ORCID)
Jonathan M. Hodgson’s ORCID record 
Sophia Nimphius’s ORCID record 
Abstract
Objective: Police force recruits have a high musculoskeletal injury burden, which results in a substantial economic burden and can lead to attrition. The objective of this study was to identify and prioritise the strategies perceived as important and feasible to reduce the prevalence, incidence, and burden of injury in police force recruits. Design: Mixed-methods concept mapping study. Methods: Forty-eight participants were recruited from four broad groups: police force recruits/officers; police force staff; health professionals; and research experts. Participants brainstormed statements in response to a prompt (“To prevent injury and/or reduce the impact of injury on law enforcement recruit training, I think it’s important to….”) before sorting and rating the statements/strategies for importance and feasibility. Descriptive statistics, multi-dimensional scaling, hierarchical cluster analysis, pattern matching and Welch’s t-tests were applied. Results: Ninety-six unique prevention strategies were identified (42 were above the grand mean for both importance and feasibility). Eight clusters appropriately represented all statements. From highest to lowest mean cluster importance these were: i) clearly communicate physical training program expectations and requirements; ii) prepare for, monitor and manage physical training load; iii) provide best practice injury identification, prevention and management; iv) educate recruits, staff and other stakeholders involved in academy training delivery; v) provide a supportive training environment that promotes health, wellbeing and injury reporting; vi) have experienced staff deliver training and use appropriate equipment; vii) deliver a comprehensive and holistic physical training program; and viii) have appropriate physical entry standards and requirements. Conclusion: We identified 42 strategies above the grand means for both importance and feasibility to reduce the burden of injury in police force recruits. These strategies can be implemented by recruits, staff delivering the training program, and/ or staff managing or governing the training program. Future research should refine how these strategies can be implemented in practice and policy.
Keywords
consumer involvement, law enforcement, occupational health, injury prevention, participatory, tactical athletes
Document Type
Journal Article
Date of Publication
12-1-2026
Article Number
81
ISSN
21991170
Volume
12
Issue
1
Publication Title
Sports Medicine - Open
Publisher
Springer
School
Nutrition and Health Innovation Research Institute / School of Medical and Health Sciences
Funding Information
This research is funded by a National Health and Medical Research Council Partnership Project and a Western Australia Department of Health Major Research Application Support Scheme. Dr Myles Murphy is supported by a Raine Medical Research Foundation Priming Grant (RPG035-2023). Dr Andrea Mosler receives salary support from Medical Research Future Fund grant (MRF2032101). Dr Joanne Kemp is supported by a NHMRC Investigator Grant (GNT2017844).
Funding received from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)
GNT2035789, GNT2017844
Funding received from the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF)
MRF2032101
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Murphy, M., Mosler, A. B., Allen, G., Donaldson, A., Ardern, C. L., Emery, C. A., Hägglund, M., Hodgson, J. M., Kemp, J. L., Langridge, D., McAlinden, T., Mirco, T., Nimphius, S., Radavelli-Bagatini, S., Staley, K., Sutton, V., Verhagen, E., & Bruder, A. M. (2026). Co-creating an intervention to prevent injuries in police force recruits: A concept mapping study of police force recruits, police force staff, health professionals, and research experts. Sports Medicine - Open, 12, Article 81. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40798-026-01042-9