Beitostølen Health sports Center in Norway: a pioneer rehabilitation institution, focusing on adapted physical activities
Beitostølen Health Sports Center (BHC)
was opened as a Norwegian national center on November 7, 1970.
BHC is located in the region of Valdres, 830 meters above sea level. The center has 200 acres of land at its disposal.
The center has a capacity of 60 clients at a time. They live in double or single rooms. During a year, about 1000 clients, children and adults in the age range from 6-70 with different disabilities, stay at the center.
BHC has three main functions;
- Physical training/environmental activities/treatment
- Education and information
- Research and developmental activities
A stay at the center, usually 4 weeks for adults and 2 _ weeks for children, is paid for by the Norwegian Social Security System. This also includes guides, helpers or parents that are needed for successful participation in the programs.
Besides living facilities, BHC consists of several buildings including a large sports hall that can be divided in three rooms, a therapy pool and a swimming pool, a room with training apparatus, testing laboratories, indoor riding hall, horse stable, dog kennel and rooms for different hobby activities. There is a sports stadium, a lake for water sports and fishing, paths in the nature, campfires, cabins, XC-tracks and an alpine ski hill.
The center is recognized as an official part of the national specialist health service system,
and as such a part of the rehabilitation services in Norway
Staff and applications at BHC
There are three major divisions; a medical division (with e.g. 3 medical doctors, 5 physiotherapists, 5 nurses, psychologist, social worker, laboratory test personnel, horseback riding instructors), the sport pedagogical division (with e.g. 6 special pedagogues/adapted physical activity (APA) instructors, project coordinators, teachers, students and helping instructors) and the administration.
The staff is divided into four rehabilitation teams; the daily practical work in the teams is cross-disciplinary, with the activities jointly organized mainly by the APA instructors and the physiotherapists, in cooperation also with the environmental activity staff.
The clients are admitted to the center by applications from a medical doctor, a rehabilitation team, special pedagogues or another relevant education or rehabilitation professional.
Health sports
are defined as physical activities designed to improve physical abilities and to foster higher levels of mental, physical and spiritual well-being. The activities at the center are used in preventive health care and in rehabilitation of people with chronic or temporary disabilities.
The term "health sports" is a national variant of the international term
Adapted Physical Activity (APA).
APA is an interdisiplinary/multidisiplinary area of expertise including rehabilitation and therapy, physical education, sport, leisure and recreation, and competitive sport at all levels.
APA combines information and research findings from sport and movement sciences (e.g. biomechanics, physiology...) and other science areas ( e.g. medicine, rehabilitation sciences, psychology...) dealing with physical activity and sport in relation to persons with diverse needs, especially individuals with disabilities (DePauw and Sherrill 1994) (1).
History
It all started in the early 1960s. The blind visionary, Erling Stordahl (1923-1994), got so exited by his experience of adapted ski tracks in winter and by horseback riding and other outdoor activities in the summer, and the possibilities it opened to him for physical exercise and mental relief, that in 1964 he initiated the ski-event Ridderrennet (later exported to USA, Canada and other countries under the name of "Ski for Light"). He started different courses designed to share his experiences with other people with disabilities. In 1966 he initiated a national fundraising campaign to provide money for construction of a health sports center. It was a successful campaign and Erling Stordahl served as the director of the center from its beginning in 1970 until 1994.
Purpose
The goal of the center is to help persons with disabilities to achieve a better quality of life by means of physical, social and cultural activities. This can be reached through experiences, learning and mastery of skills that give increased physical and mental competencies in coping with the daily life in the individuals' local community.
The programs are carried out in close cooperation with the users themselves, and strive towards optimal functional independence for the user.
The programs at the center are a supplement and an alternative to other forms of rehabilitation. Health sports are considered by the health authorities an important part of a comprehensive rehabilitation "chain".
1.) Provide a wide spectrum of activities suitable for persons with disabilities.
A stay at the center is a short term stay in relation to a total rehabilitation process, and might serve as one important part of a rehabilitation "chain". The main focus is on provision of a wide spectrum of activities, in spite of a disability, more than because of a disability - "focus on the potential". In addition the facility offers a range of services that in some cases can be a precondition for participating in activities, and in other cases might be necessary to obtain full effect of the activity programs. These services are related to the professional background of the staff.
The activities offered are to some extent reflecting the Norwegian activity culture, with great emphasis on outdoor activities.
With the long winter in Norway, it is natural to have a variety of winter activities available, like different ice and snow activities; e.g. XC and alpine skiing (sitting, standing, with mono-skis or other types of equipment and helping devices), biathlon, sledge activities by means of poles and/or dogs. Other examples of sport activities are gymnastics, different ball games, activities in the two pools, horseback riding (10 horses), cycling, athletics, orienteering, rowing, paddling, archery, air-gun shooting, hiking and outdoor life.
Environmental and hobby activities might be stone work (gem polishing), leather work, handicrafts (e.g. weaving, knitting, silk painting), informal games and plays, entertainment and dance, biology lessons, dance lessons, tours and several outdoor activities.
Specific treatment of an individual character is also offered to eliminate or relieve pain, correct disturbances in the circulatory system or to normalize functions in the muscles and joints, and as ADL training.
2.) Be a resource center
BHC functions as a resource center for the health service system, the educational system and the sports organizations in our country and abroad.
At BHC we offer our experiences and knowledge base to different organizations, professions and consumers at different levels; as part of a formal education, as courses and through positions for trainees. Many of the programs are based on the In-Service education-concept.
The academic study "Physical Activity and Disability" is a one year full time study at the bachelor level, under administration of the Norwegian University of Sport and Physical Education (NUSPE), run in close cooperation with BHC. The students involve in practice and theory at the center for one full semester. It is possible to pursue masters and doctoral studies in the same field in cooperation with NUSPE and BHC. There is also a close cooperation with the European Masters Degree study in APA (EMDAPA) that includes 30 European universities and is organized by the University of Leuven in Belgium.
3.) Investigate the physical, mental and social aspects of activity for different categories of persons
One of the objectives of the center is to investigate the physical, mental and social aspects of activity for different categories of persons. It is a task to develop and try out new methods of training, health sports activities and technical equipment for use in physical activities for persons with disabilities.
There is cooperation with national institutions and organizations, as well as international contacts, on different projects. At this moment, the following projects are at various stages of implementation:
- relations between "quality of life" and a stay at BHC
- cooperation and competency transfer between local communities and BHC
- body and self concept related to youths with eating disorders
- horseback riding as activity and therapy
- documentation of experiences in different sports activities (like e.g. indoor climbing, orienteering, skiing and other winter activities, tennis, horseback riding and others)
- integration of persons with disabilities in the national sports organizations
- learning processes in APA, with a focus on relations between theory and practice
- outcome measurements in rehabilitation
The different project coordinators would be happy to get in touch with colleagues at other centers, organizations or universities that have interests and relevant experiences and knowledge related to one or more of these projects.
Recent International events located at BHC
The center hosted the 10th International Symposium on Adapted Physical Activity (ISAPA '95) in May 1995. "Quality of life through Adapted Physical Activity and Sport - A Lifespan Concept" was chosen as the main theme for the symposium. The program encompassed 99 oral presentation, 80 posters, 19 films and 9 workshops, besides site visits and outdoor sessions. The symposium is documented in Conference Proceedings, that can be ordered from the center (2).
INTERSKI '99 was held at Beitostølen April 10.-17. 1999. This was a big international ski event with 2000 participants (ski teachers) from all over the world. BHC involved, and every participating nation were encouraged to include at least one participant with a disability in the delegation to the congress (demo-skier, lecturer, ordinary participant or in another role). Many Norwegians with disabilities participated (about 50), along with about 30 from other countries.
Inclusion in skiing made a great step forward during this event.
A yearly event is the annual international Ridder-uke, a winter sports week for skiers with a disability. It was arranged for the 40th time, April 7th - 13th 2003. There was a celebration of the jubilee for this long existing event that really started XC-skiing for persons with disabilities and was the forerunner for BHC (3).
Many other national and some international seminars, courses and camps are being held annually at the center.
A short description of the environmental qualities of the center.
BHC represents several environmental qualities that are hard to describe but potentially useful in rehabilitative work.
Environmental qualities can be divided in:
- Social (human) environment
- Activity environment
- Nature environment
These environmental conditions "work" together and will have an individual influence upon a person (with a certain disability in this case).
The social environment consists of persons in different ages and with different disabilities, cross professional staff, students and others in an informal setting with activities and social togetherness in focus. Important aspects occurs with variations in function and disability. The environment is minimal hierarchic. The buildings and environment enforces social meetings. The focus is upon individual learning, in spite of having a disability, not because of having it.
Activities are numerous based on available facilities for most activities in Norwegian activity culture. Key-words are "ecological learning process" (H.Gardner) (4), using all sense modalities (J.Ayres) (5) "learning by doing" (Dewey) (6) and "learning in movement" (J.P. Arnold) (7).
An objective is inner motivation for activity based on mastery of adapted skills. A natural result will then be follow-up in the individuals' local environment, which is the ultimate goal of a stay at BHC. Adaptation of activities rather than individuals is also a key concept..
Nature environment influences just by being there around us all the time. It's not only looked upon, but used as an activity environment. It also has a cultural aspect. The nature could be a teacher in itself, if you allow it to be. You are a part of it, if you let that happen. You can utilize it for many individual and personal tasks (an ecological perspective).
Change of lifestyle could be necessary. Change is a process, and tied to individual experiences, self-understanding and reflecting self-evaluation.
The staffs' duty is to be change facilitators.
To understand what the person you should help understands, is a precondition for being a facilitator of a change process (Kirkegaard). But be at the same time aware that you will never understand it all (humility).
To be a good APA specialist you need, as in other fields, to;
- believe in basic philosophies corresponding to work and role
- have an attitude to do something with them
- have knowledge about the profession and the context
- have skills to carry out the different tasks related to service delivery
It's a challenge for professional work in the field of APA to find and set the standards in this respect.
Based on more than 30 years of experience, Beitostølen Health sports Center has succeeded to set some standards and be recognized as an important part of the rehabilitation services in Norway (8) (9).
References:
DePauw, K., Sherrill, C.: In: THENAPA News-letter nr. 1, April 2002 (www.kuleuven.ac.be/thenapa/newsletter/)
Inge Morisbak, Per Erik Jørgensen (Eds.): ISAPA '95; Quality of life trough Adapted Physical Activity and Sport - A lifespan concept. Conference Proceedings. Oslo & Beitostølen, Norway - May 22-26, 1995.
Ridder-uken ("Knight-week") 2003 Winter sports week for skiers with a disability; Further information can be obtained from the mail address rrv@sensewave.com
Gardner, H.: Slik tenker og lærer barn - og slik bør lærere undervise (Norwegian ed.). Praxis forlag, 1993.
Ayres, J.: Sanseintegration hos børn (Danish ed.) Copenhagen, Munksgaard, 1986.
Dewey, J.: The School and Society. Chicago. Univ. of Chicago Press, 1967.
Arnold, J. P.: The Preeminence of Skill as an Educational Value in the Movement Curriculum. In: Quest, 43:66-77 1991.
BHC's home page; www.beitostolenhelsesport.no
Beitostølen Health sports Center; Main brochure.
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