From now on, for children, it will suffice to complete a health questionnaire with the parents to be able to practice a sports activity. – Humphrey Janga / Pixabay
- It will no longer be necessary to provide a medical certificate for children who wish to practice sports in a club.
- From now on, except in special cases, it will suffice to complete a questionnaire on your state of health. A provision which is the subject of a decree published in the “Official Journal” on Saturday 8 May.
- On the side of doctors, we hope that this measure will not harm the regular medical monitoring of children. Especially adolescents, who consult little.
This was the document to be provided at each start of the school year, when the children’s sports activities resumed. From now on, the medical certificate of non-contraindication to the practice of sport for minors is no longer compulsory. As part of the law on the acceleration and simplification of public action of December 7, 2020, and in accordance with
a decree published last Saturday at Official newspaper, it is replaced by a health questionnaire completed by the child and his parents.
Simplify access to sport by making life easier for families
“The practice of a sporting activity is essential to fight against the devastating effects of a sedentary lifestyle”, recalls the Ministry of Health. And to underline that it is even “determining for the health and the well-being of the French, and in particular of the children”, especially since the beginning of the health crisis. So, no question of complicating things. “The government wanted to simplify children’s access to a club or a sports association”, explains the Ministry of Sports, at the head of which Roxana Maracineanu “is working to remove all the obstacles to regular sports practice”.
In practice, for minors, it will therefore no longer be necessary to produce this famous certificate to obtain or renew a license. “This measure will simplify the lives of families,” says the ministry. “The argument of influencing sedentary lifestyle by eliminating this consultation seems a little misplaced to me, I do not think that this is the factor that causes young people to do less physical activity,” comments Dr. Jean-Louis Bensoussan, doctor. general practitioner and general secretary of the union
MG France. Especially since for children under 11, it is exceptional that parents only come to consult for the medical certificate, he underlines. When children are young, we see them very regularly for vaccination, winter viruses such as gastroenteritis or nasopharyngitis, sprains or others. And it is during these consultations that they ask us to renew the medical certificate for children’s sport ”.
A questionnaire to be completed by the child and his parents
Henceforth, therefore, families will simply have to fill in a questionnaire on the state of health of their child. “Did you get dizzy during an effort?” “” Have you started taking a new medicine every day and for a long time? “” Are you having trouble falling asleep? “Are you feeling sad or worried?” “” Do you think you need to see your doctor to continue the sport? Here are some of the twenty-two questions the child must answer. His parents, for their part, must specify if there are cases of serious heart or brain disease in the family, indicate whether they are worried about the weight of their child or whether they have missed scheduled appointments. the medical follow-up of their child.
“The questionnaire, which already existed, is rather well done, recognizes Dr. Bensoussan. Often, parents come with the questionnaire already completed and that helps us a lot, it is a good way to initiate the consultation, to identify possible problematic points ”.
Do not neglect the regular monitoring of children
But “this questionnaire should not replace the child’s regular medical visits, in particular to monitor his growth”, insists Dr Sylvie Hubinois, member of the board of directors. French Association of Ambulatory Pediatrics (AFPA). Thus, during these appointments, “we consult the health record, we check whether the child is up to date with his vaccines, we monitor his weight and growth curve, says Dr Bensoussan. These consultations on fitness for sport for the 12-18 age group are particularly important because they allow prevention, particularly in the area of obesity, drug addiction by addressing subjects related to tobacco or cannabis. These are therefore important times for an age group that we see less in our practices, quite simply because adolescents are not often sick ”.
The Ministry of Health is reassuring and indicates that it is not a question of neglecting the necessary medical monitoring of minors. He recalls that Health Insurance has “increased the number of consultations supported up to 18 years”, and that “this measure should encourage a massive resumption of sport”. In addition, he specifies that “the production of such a certificate remains when the answers to the minor’s health questionnaire lead to a medical examination, but also for disciplines with particular constraints”. This is the case of mountaineering, scuba diving, sports disciplines practiced in competition for which the fight can end by knockout, or rugby. “It’s a good thing to have these arrangements in place,” replies Dr Bensoussan. There are sports where the medical certificate is part of a diagnostic process linked to the physical activity itself. Apart from these specific cases, an annual consultation for fitness for sport may not be necessary, if there is the guarantee that everything is done otherwise to ensure the regular monitoring of the health of minors. “.