"MovetoSport" in Belgium: an organizational model to facilitate skilled guidance of persons with multiple sclerosis during exercise and sport in the community

Abstract

This paper describes the non-profit organization "MovetoSport", which has recently been established in Flanders, Belgium. Founding members are both practitioners and academic physiotherapists and exercise physiologists well experienced with specific neurological problems in persons with multiple sclerosis. The organization regularly provides educational courses and workshops for health care professionals including sport instructors working in rehabilitation centers, neurological units, but also in the community and sport facilities. Certified professionals are visible on a website, which is accessible for persons with MS. "MovetoSport" also collaborates with the MS Society for information transfer as well as for the teaching of persons with MS attending specific educational days. The overall vision is to provide affordable and accessible exercise therapy programs for all persons with MS.