(Westlake Village) – (November 10, 2017) PTA Global and PTN have announced their collaboration with the Medical Fitness Education Foundation (MFEF), to create educational courses for Fitness Professionals and Ancillary Health Care Providers to assist people with chronic diseases. There will also be courses in the areas of active aging, fall prevention, balance & proprioception.
PTA Global and MFEF share a mutual goal of educating fitness professionals to be able to prevent, rehabilitate and preserve the quality of life for those with chronic disease/medical conditions.
In the United States, chronic diseases, injuries and the health risk behaviors that cause them account for most health care costs. Eighty-six percent of the nation’s $2.7 trillion annual health care expenditures are for people with chronic and mental health conditions.
There are approximately eighty million baby boomers (aged 50 and over) in the United States making up 30% of the nation’s population. As this group ages, we are seeing a significant increase in obesity, chronic disease and individuals with multiple medical conditions.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, by 2030, the number of U.S. adults aged 65 or older will more than double to about 71 million. The rapidly increasing number of older Americans has far-reaching implications for our nation’s public health system and will place unprecedented demands on the provision of health care and aging-related services.
Regular physical activity is one globally accepted strategy to promote and preserve health. Developing a plan for regular exercise can be difficult and people with chronic medical conditions have an even greater challenge. A qualified medical fitness professional helps make the transition from medical management and/or physical therapy to a regular physical activity program following a surgery, an injury, a medical diagnosis or exacerbation of a pre-existing condition and can be an essential partner in developing a progressive fitness program.
PTA Global President, Kevin Steelesaid, “We believe that fitness professionals working with the aging population must have a higher level of knowledge, skill, and expertise, and it’s this type of education that has the highest growth potential. Our collaboration with the Medical Fitness Education Foundation will help us deliver this type of education to fitness professionals.”
“We believe education is important to empower fitness professionals to work confidently with those who have a chronic disease, medical conditions, disabilities or women’s health issues including pre & postnatal care.It is clear, the demand for more medical fitness professionals will only grow as our population grows and ages. Our goal is to facilitate education, in as many possible ways across the United States so these fitness professionals can serve their communities.”, MFEF Founder, Lisa Dougherty, said of the partnership.
About the PTA Global (PTAG) and PTontheNet (PTN)
Together PTA Global and PTontheNet form the world’s largest online platform to provide educational courses, tools, and resources to Fitness Professionals, Wellness Coaches, Ancillary Health Care Providers, and Coaches.
About the Medical Fitness Education Foundation (MFEF)
The Medical Fitness Education Foundation (MFEF) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) founded in 2017 to facilitate education for fitness & allied healthcare professionals to be able to help prevent, rehabilitate and preserve the quality of life for those with chronic disease/medical conditions, including but not limited to: Alzheimer’s, Arthritis, Autism, Cancer, Diabetes, Disabilities Fibromyalgia, Heart Disease, Mental Health Challenges, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s, Osteoporosis, Respiratory Disease, Stroke and women’s health issues including pre & postpartum care.