8/14/2013 2:16:00 PM
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Concussion regulations are stricter in 2013
Mark Carpenter
Staff Writer
One of the most memorable scenes in last week's first episode of "Hard Knocks" featuring the Cincinnati Bengals involved trainer Paul Sparling and wide receiver Marvin Jones. Jones had suffered an apparent head injury and was consulting on the sideline with the trainer. Jones felt like he was fine to get back in practice but Sparling eventually used the "play it safe for your family" argument to sideline Jones, who missed the team's first exhibition game in Atlanta.
The fact that there are an estimated 1-6-3.8 million sports-related concussions in the United States every year has led officials at all levels to make these incidences of head injuries a public health priority. Here in the state of Ohio, the problem has gotten serious enough that the Ohio House of Representatives passed House Bill 143 which in turn forced the Ohio High School Athletic Association to modify and strengthen their own concussion regulations.
Beginning this year, all coaches will be completing a Concussion Course, available online, sponsored by the National Federation of High Schools or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Not only will coaches be completing this course, but so will all contest officials.
"The online course educates coaches about concussion symptoms, all of the new rules, and the return to play protocol (RTP)," said Brian McCord from the Sports Medicine Department at the Adams County Regional Medical Center. "The course reinforces all of the practices that we teach in our Pupil Activity Validation Classes."
The RTP is always an issue as players and even their parents will deny the injury in order to get back into the action. As of April 26 of this year, a change in the RTP prohibits any student who has been removed from practice or a game by a coach or contest official from returning to that practice or game on that same day. Return to play will be permitted thereafter, and not until the next day, and only with written authorization from a physician or an athletic trainer under the supervision of a physician.
"With the new regulations, the entire coaching staff, officials, athletic trainers, and physicians are held accountable for monitoring the well-being of our athletes," said McCord. "We will be much more vigilant about concussions, making it easier to spot the possibility of a concussion and then sideline testing will determine the status of the injury."
"Regardless of the athlete's desire, player safety will be our top priority. I will refer athletes to their medical provider for evaluation and clearance, but will assist in the monitoring of symptoms and the RTP. I have always been ultra-conservative in these situations and will continue that philosophy."
For years, the OHSAA has required each member school to hold a pre-season parent meeting to go over rules and regulations and McCord has been attending some of those meetings to explain some of the new rules.
"We have been reviewing the new concussion regulations, explaining how we will handle evaluations, referrals for further treatment, and the return to play procedures," says McCord. "I felt that by meeting with parents prior to the seasons starting, the parents would be more educated on the new guidelines and will know in advance how we will handle concussions. Hopefully this will prevent disagreements in the future as the parent and student must also sign a state mandated form that covers the new policies." That form is known as the Ohio Department of Health's "Concussion Information Sheet."
"Concussions are the hot topic right now and the long term effects are becoming more apparent," added McCord. "The new OHSAA guidelines have addressed this ever increasing problem and hopefully result in safer competition for all of our athletes."
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