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Training in assessment of personal injury based on biomechanical analysis to improve sustainability and efficacy of the health care system
Start date: Oct 1, 2015, End date: Sep 30, 2017 PROJECT  FINISHED 

Bodily harm is defined as the result of an aggression, exogenous or endogenous, in any body area and its origin can be due to a violent or natural event. The former group corresponds with accidents, and the latter refers to pathological processes that can lead to multiple diseases The manifestations of bodily harm are different but one of the most important are the musculoskeletal disorders, which are the most frequent complaints reported in health surveys in Europe. These disorders present a huge variety of names, reflecting the diversity of opinions and lack of consensus regarding their origin and treatments. Musculoskeletal injuries are very common in industrialized countries and have very important consequences for the individual and society. In fact, 50% of the European population reports musculoskeletal pain in one or more body points throughout the past year Work conditions contribute in a negative way in the intensity and evolution of these disorders. In some EU countries, more than 40% of social and sanitary awards for lost working days are due to these injuries. Another external agent that has a relevant role in the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders is the traffic accidents. The whiplash is the most common injury in collisions. According to some Spanish statistics, the whiplash is present in over 80% of traffic accidents. Many of these injuries present an unspecific origin or it is not possible to find an organic alteration that justifies them. Very often conventional diagnostic techniques do not show apparent injuries at organic level. This situation forces clinicians to work in uncertain situations. The absence of objective tools to assist clinicians in the determination of the real bodily harm of patients, produces, in some cases, incorrect evaluations and inappropriate treatments, with a negative impact on the public health systems and patients. Currently, biomechanics is growing because offers a new approach to obtain quantitative, objective and homogeneous data to improve personal injury assessment procedures. It is based on knowledge of mechanics, engineering, anatomy and physiology to study the behavior of human body, analyzing body segments movements, joints restrictions and muscular strength. These methodologies allow professionals to understand the relationship between clinical outputs and physics so they can corroborate their clinical hypothesis. There are many evidences in scientific literature about the applicability of biomechanics in the assessment of musculoskeletal injuries. In Google Scholar there are more than 29.000 entries when the search criteria is biomechanical assessment of pathological gait and more than 56.000 if they are biomechanics and low back pain. In fact, there are European countries, as Spain, which normally uses biomechanics in personal injury assessment. In fact, medical reports include biomechanical data, being recognized by regulatory institutions as a complementary medical test. Nevertheless, despite the fact that biomechanics proved its utility, it is not growing at the same velocity in every Europe countries. This fact happens because biomechanics must be applied taking into account legal framework and regulatory system because it has legal consequences. Hence, the main objective of the AREYOUFINE? project is to offer innovative e-learning courses focused on biomechanical analysis to improve personal injury assessment taking into account the different laws and boundary conditions in Europe. Therefore, taking into account professionals requirements, we will propose new harmonization contents and validate them to EU countries’ realities. All the main results obtained will be offered with none restriction. There will be a project website available (at least three years after the project ends) to disseminate them. At the end of the project we will develop online courses in English, Spanish, Italian and Polish that will be oriented to medical doctors working in insurance companies, hospitals, regulatory entities and legal experts focused on personal injury. AREYOUFINE? project consortium ensures the achievement of the objectives thanks to their complementary skills: On one hand, IBV will offer its expertise in biomechanics, USC in legal medicine and pedagogical methodologies, CIOP in ocupational health and SSSUP in law applied in this field at European level . On the other hand, CEREDOC will put the consortium in contact with European professionals of personal injury assessment, and IALM with international legal medicine experts. Finally, IBV will be in charge of the definition and hosting of the e-learning platform.
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