Exercise Physiology:
Shared Reflections by ASEP Members
Tommy Boone, PhD, MPH, FASEP
Professor and Chair
Department of Exercise Physiology
Director of Exercise Physiology
Laboratories
The College of St. Scholastica
1200 Kenwood Office
Duluth, MN 55811
Introduction
Our world is profoundly
different than what it was last year, and the changes to come will continue
to be breathtaking. The likelihood that exercise physiologists will continue
to work toward professionalization is good. Efforts will extend beyond
the United States to a more "global" appreciation of professional needs.
The fast changing technology of internet websites will create opportunities
beyond what could have been imagined with traditional methods of communication.
For better or for worse,
the United States exercise physiologists have taken the lead in professionalization
via the nonprofit organization, ASEP. The question now is the expectation
and anticipation of changes. Yet no one believes that ASEP is going to
change decades of problems in just a few years. Members of the ASEP Board
understand as well as many of the ASEP members that the greatest change
has occurred with the initiative of ASEP. There are still hundreds of exercise
physiologists who are yet to voluntarily come forth and joined the Society.
More Than Rhetoric
ASEP is, however, more than
rhetoric! It is an American nonprofit organization that is organized to
strengthen the profession by unification of exercise physiologists. The
members are important to guiding ASEP and its accommodation of legitimate
professional needs to alleviate problems faced by exercise physiologists.
It is an assembly of integrated,
responsible professionals who advocate services and assistance with solving
professional issues (such as certification, licensure, code of ethics,
and accreditation). Obviously, the goals and objectives of ASEP are recognized
as proper and important to professional growth and stability.
The collaboration among many
serious-minded leaders in the field will be realized with the implementation
of new ideas and models for organizational growth. This reminds me that
we are clearly at the end of one period of an era and the beginning of
a new one. But no one can take the development of exercise physiology for
granted. It is a phenomenon of the time.
What ASEP is trying to accomplish
is therefore no different than change itself. Objectives, assumptions,
and mind-sets some years ago just isn't the language of the exercise physiologist
today. Values are different. People are different. Objectives are different.
The profession is different, and hence organizations must be different.
We can no longer work under
the older basic assumptions that we have for years in sports medicine.
Our very existence is a function of our durability, but even that is subject
to exhaustion if business as usual doesn't change. From an ASEP perspective,
part of the change is in rethinking the profession and in the anticipation
of threats to commanding and managing respect.
The age of one organization
that represents many types of professionals including exercise physiologists
is over. The age of the organization that fit the needs of the members
is beginning. The mission and the work of ASEP (the new organization) are
challenging and attractive to exercise physiologists who are looking for
respect, financial stability, and credibility.
In February 1999, ASEP will
organize a trial-run certification test required for the first national
certification based on a series of test questions generated from academic
course work at several institutions. This project is shared with exercise
physiologists at the University of New Mexico who will also lead the way
in national certification during the summer months. Both trail-runs are
essential to realizing the best examination, hands-on experiences, and
the capable staff to ensure the certification process.
The Big Question
The "one big question" is
will national certification make a difference in the Society's influence
on the professionalization of exercise physiology. The answer is YES of
course and why not? What we will see is a recognition of the critical difference
between an academically certified professional and a technically certified
professional!
ASEP members share the belief
that academic certification is and should be the conversation of the next
century. Students should be encourage, therefore, to invest in tangible
professional benefits with dimensions of professional development, vision,
and mission that otherwise have not been underscored in recent decades.
In short, the current strategy
is to simply develop and invest in the talent of exercise physiologists.
To do so, it is necessary to challenge old assumptions and old structures.
Without the willingness to boldly commit to reaffirming professional values
and reexamining the mission of exercise physiologists, the future can't
be viewed with much confidence and effectiveness.
Now is the Time to Invest
We are entering not just
a new century, but a very different era of professional development. Now
is the time to invest in the development of the profession and the message
that ASEP is designed to serve its members. We all have experience too
often the existence of an organization as though the organization is more
important than the members. That just isn't the case with ASEP. It is different.
Its reason for being is to provide exercise physiologists a common defense
to a lack of a shared absence in professionalism.
It has nothing to do with
the "whatever" that may be happening in other organizations; it has everything
to do with leadership and management ideas that are important to the intellectual
landscape of exercise physiology. It is about a renewed belief in the idea
that organizations exist to benefit all members equally.
After so many years building
up other organizations, we can now at last capture what we are and build
upon an integrated understanding of a collective vision of the future.
It is this unrealized collaboration among exercise physiologists that is
significantly different from the past. It places everything in perspective
and connects us with each other.
The Door is Open
This is a miraculous moment
in exercise physiology. The door is open for a new way of thinking, and
we are learning from one another in ways unrealized before. We are setting
the stage for a new kind of exercise physiology that is linked by concepts
and beliefs of professionalism.
To make a lasting difference,
we must remember that a beginning requires a lot of effort. There are challenges
we have to deal with. Complexities that must be resolved. Cynical personalities
to help. Leadership and partnership transitions to be described, commuicated,
and managed. We need discussions about the future. Yesterday is in the
past. We need help for our students who look to graduate and find a job.
Yet, somehow we have failed
to understand that our students are our greatest asset. They are the reason
we exist, and it is they who will become our leaders. Their understanding
of what we are doing, and our efforts to maintain dignity in our work will
influence their personalities, ethics, and personal life.
Our behavior as well as our
words that speak to being professional are indispensable to building a
climate of trust within ASEP and the profession. We can't dismiss our responsibility
just as we can't show disrespect and improper consideration for other organizations.
We need to be spirited, motivated, and hard working leaders who can be
trusted and respected to do the right thing. In a nutshell, that is exactly
what ASEP membership is about; the consideration of others and the challenge
they are facing to grow professionally.
Sharing Values
A shared commitment to the
ASEP mission and purpose is the energy and synergy required to reinvent
our profession and the community of exercise physiologists worldwide. ASEP
is the organization of the future for exercise physiologists. It is exercise
physiology-centered, exercise physiology-focused, and exercise physiology-driven
to build and convey the importance of professionalization.
The organization of the future
exists because its members know what is important. It is a message to other
exercise physiologists that the most important thing we can do at the moment
is listen and trust ASEP members. They know where they are going. They
are interested in shaping the profession, and providing opportunities and
increasing profitability to all exercise physiologists.
ASEP is about building trust
and encouraging change. It is about treating exercise physiologists with
respect and dignity even if it means breaking away from old ways of doing
things.
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It is about new initiatives
and a high-commitment professional satisfaction, successful financial measures,
retention in the field, new products and new developments including a readiness
for new ideas, concepts, and insights.
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It is about commitment and continuous
improvment in knowledge and capability as teachers, researchers, rehabilitation
specialists, and coaches.
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It is about marketing what exercise
physiologists do, the recruitment of new and effective ideas, productivity,
and building a shared community of exercise physiologists with greater
job opportunities for employability.
There are simply limitless possibilities
and benefits of investing in ASEP. With it, we can coach, teach, and cultivate
ourselves. Without it, we will continue to debate meaningless strategies
for marketing what we think we do. There will be fewer leaders and even
less with leadership abilities. Only a few will articulate for the majority
and they will have little convincing evidence of their ideas and values.
However, we don't have to worry about that happening. Thanks to the ASEP
members!
