Mark Campbell, left, monitors a patient on a previous visit to a heart transplant hospital in Dallas, TX
Published Friday 28 October 2016 at 9:22
A 51-year-old man, who works as a Clinical Referral Manager for Blackburn with Darwen Council, has become the first ever team member from the UK to join the ACSM (American College of Sports Medicine) examination team.
Mark Campbell attained the RCEP (Registered Clinical Exercise Physiologist) qualification which is one of the ACSM’s highest-ranking clinical certifications and one of the most difficult to attain in the world earlier this year.
Mark, who is employed by Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, is now part of the ACSM exam team who are responsible for reviewing test questions and overseeing the RCEP qualification.
He said:
There’s only 956 people in the world that hold the qualification out of 50,000 members including myself. It’s an honour to serve on the examination board for this world recognised organisation because throughout my career I’ve looked at them in awe. They are the bee’s knees in my eyes!
He added:
I was understandably nervous when I was sitting the exam to become RCEP certified which has a 36 – 38% pass rate. The exam lasted for four hours and I felt a huge sense of relief when I passed considering the relatively low pass rate.
Mark has racked up a range of achievements throughout the years from attaining a Master’s degree in Cardiovascular Health and Rehabilitation to becoming part of the ACPICR (Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Cardiac Rehabilitation) group.
The Blackburn with Darwen Council employee regularly travels across the country and beyond as part of his work attending conferences and advising physiotherapists in Cardiac Rehab on the safety of resistance training.
Mark admits the most rewarding aspect of his career is the work he does within Blackburn and Darwen.
He said:
The most rewarding part is seeing those who are frail improve their quality of life through our specialist rehabilitation programme.
It’s my responsibility to work with those who are considered high risk by other professionals due to their cardiac conditions. I’ve helped patients become strong enough to achieve their goals. One of my patients went on to climb the Great Wall of China and it’s hearing success stories such as that one that inspire me to do my job every day!
Councillor Mustafa Desai, Executive Member for Health and Adult Social Care, said:
This is a fantastic achievement and very well done to Mark. To be amongst such a small pool of people across the world to achieve this certification is testament to his hard work and dedication. Mark’s work in cardiac rehabilitation in the borough, including designing and prescribing cardiovascular and strength training programmes for patients, has been vitally important for a number of years and we are delighted he has been able to take this next step in his career.
For more information about the health and fitness services provided in the borough, visit www.refreshbwd.com