A Granby soccer player is removed from the field after colliding with a Gateway player during a tournament game at Szot Park in 2011. (File photo by chief photographer Frederick Gore)
Gateway adopts new concussion policy
HUNTINGTON – The Gateway Regional School Committee voted to accept the new Athletic Concussion Policy at their March 14 meeting.
The policy was developed in response to a new state law (M.G.L. 111:222), which requires that all schools participating in Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (M.I.A.A.) programs provide annual training in head injury prevention. The law also requires that any student, who exhibits signs or symptoms suggestive of concussion after a head injury or practice, must be removed from the activity. They cannot return until medically cleared by a professional health care provider (licensed physician, licensed neuro-psychologist, certified athletic trainer, or licensed nurse practitioner).
Symptoms of concussion are different for each person and injury, and some may not be noticeable for hours or days. Common symptoms include headache, confusion, difficulty remembering or paying attention, balance problems, dizziness, feeling sluggish, being irritable, nausea or vomiting, memory loss, blurry vision, sensitivity to light, slowed reaction, loss of consciousness and sleep problems.
The new law was passed in Massachusetts in July 2010 to take effect this year. Gateway has been following the new protocols for a while.
“Getting everyone educated on the policy and process will be an ongoing task,” said Gateway’s Athletic Director, Gary St.Peter. “But having all of the coaches, athletes and parents understand the protocol and the importance of communication to keep everyone updated will hopefully make things a little easier, as we all adapt to the changes.”
Gateway is partnering with the Gateway School-Based Health Center and Dick’s Sporting Goods to provide baseline ImPACT testing for all athletes and members of the marching band. ImPACT (Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing) is a standard tool used in comprehensive clinical management of concussions for athletes of all ages. It measures player symptoms, verbal and visual memory, processing speed, and reaction time measured to 1/100th of a second. The web-based testing takes about a half-hour on average, to measure speed, accuracy and memory. Baseline data is good for two years. The test should be repeated within 72 hours of a concussion. When students return to their baseline levels, and are symptom-free, have participated in a gradual return to play program, and have been medically cleared they may actively participate in the sport. Eileen Hirsch, Nurse Practitioner for Gateway’s School-Based Health Center, receives and reviews the test results.
Research has shown that clinical exams and physical assessments are 64 percent accurate, as a means of measuring recovery from a concussion. ImPACT testing alone is 83% accurate. When performed together – as Gateway does – the results are 93 percent accurate.
Gateway has completed baseline ImPACT tests on 130 students to date. They have wrapped up the tests on the winter sports and spring season athletes, and are conducting “make-ups” for baseball and softball now. The marching band will complete the tests in April, and the fall sports season athletes will start in May.
“It’s been a huge project and a lot of work, but it’s important,” said Linda Dugas, Gateway’s Nurse Leader. “The ramifications of a concussion can be lifelong.”
Gateway’s School-Based Health Center has been an asset to the district in this project. Its on-site, licensed nurse practitioner (working under the supervision of s physician) can diagnose and manage concussion, and ultimately clear the student for participation in sports—all occurring with minimal disruption to the school day. Hilltown Community Health Centers, Inc. runs Gateway’s School-Based Health Center.
If an impact to the head occurs during a game, the athlete must come out and be assessed by a coach, athletic director or trainer. If they are showing any signs of head injury, they must stay out and cannot return without a formal medical evaluation and approval.
“Athlete’s safety is always the number one concern,” said St.Peter. “Without an athletic trainer on site, having the extra step of the imPACT test makes me feel more comfortable that we are doing the right thing by not rushing kids back onto the field.”
From the new policy, “Student athletes who receive concussions may appear to be “fine” on the outside, when in actuality they have a brain injury and are not able to return to play. Research has shown that young concussed athletes who return to play before their brain has healed are highly vulnerable to more prolonged post-concussion syndrome, or, in rare cases, a catastrophic neurological injury known as Second Impact Syndrome.”
All athletes, coaches and parents have to complete an online training under the new regulations. The school also provides them with written information about concussions.
