Information for Health Professionals

What is BACPR Exercise Instructor Training?

The British Association for Cardiovascular Prevention & Rehabilitation (BACPR) has developed a training course for exercise instructors who wish to offer safe and effective exercise programmes in the community eg in classes at leisure centres, in health clubs and personal training.

This training course was established in 1998 and is widely recognised and highly respected within the fitness industry. It has forged strong links between health professionals and exercise professionals in this field.

What does being a Phase III endorser involve?

You may find that exercise instructors who have heard about the training course will contact you, as a Phase III professional in order to ask you to endorse their application for the course. You may regularly endorse instructors or it could be your first time. In both cases this liaison may lead to establishing or developing a Phase IV exercise programme in your area.

As their endorser we ask that you meet with them at least once prior to the course and then arrange with them at least four visits to your clinically supervised cardiac rehabilitation programme after they have completed day 4 of the course.

In order to assess their ability to apply theory to practice, students who complete the Phase IV course will be asked to submit one written case study of a patient who has been through Phase III rehabilitation and to prescribe two appropriate exercise programmes for this patient. The student will need your help in identifying a patient who is currently in your Phase III rehabilitation programme following myocardial infarction or revascularisation. It is hoped that Phase III programme coordinators who have endorsed a student’s application will assist the student in his/her completion of the case study by securing the consent of the selected patient, completing and countersigning a transfer sheet and by discussing, with the student, the relevant aspects of the patient’s management during Phase III.

The student has been provided with plenty of written information and preparation and submission of their case study and should be able to answer any questions you may have.

The BACPR acknowledges that the support and expertise of Phase III professionals plays an invaluable part in the instructors’ learning experience.

Good collaboration between Phase III and IV will enhance the provision of high quality, long term maintenance care for CHD patients in the community. With this aim we continue to welcome your comments and queries on this course.