Waltham High enacts strict concussion guidelines for athletes
Concussion awareness has become a focal point at every level of athletics in recent years.
Now it is becoming mandatory for Massachusetts high schools.
Following the guidelines of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Heath and Human Services, the preseason paperwork for Waltham High athletes this fall includes a section that requires all parents and athletes to list a concussion history and gives them websites to learn more about head injuries. Trainers, coaches and officials must also take an online course on how to identify and react to possible concussions.
The impending state law on head trauma is meant to protect athletes from concussions that for years went undiagnosed or not taken seriously enough.
“It’s a step that we’ve taken to get ahead of the game knowing what will be expected from the state,” Waltham High trainer Debbie Riggott said. “We started this several years ago. We’ve done it in several steps and we’re hoping we’ve finally gotten to the stage where parents and athletes know these educational components are available. They have access to them and we have (the histories) in our records so we are aware of them. Nobody can participate in a sport until everyone is aware of them.”
Riggott said the concussion history of each athlete will be provided to coaches so both they and trainers have access to them if there is a head injury on the field. While all athletes go through a similar assessment following a head injury, Riggott said even more precautions will be used if it’s shown that an athlete has a history of concussions.
“As the number of head injuries increase they become more worrisome,” Riggott said. “Concussion history is really important. A lot of times when an athlete has had a head injury they cannot remember when or if they’ve had a head injury. That’s why it’s so important to have it on paper because one of the first things that happens is loss of memory.”
Coaches, officials and parents are also being asked to look for nausea, any balance problems or dizziness, double or fuzzy vision, sensitivity to light, feeling sluggish, feeling foggy or groggy, concentration problems, confusion and headaches.
“It’s amazing that kids get a head injury and some parents don’t know the first symptom to look for,” Riggott said. “A headache – kids aren’t supposed to have a headache. That’s the first symptom you look for. Some of these past football athletes who now have kids in the system are like ‘I used to have a headache every day.’ But who knows what those were.
“Personality changes are one of the other things that parents can be most aware of. Over time it can have an effect on their academics and we’ll notice it. But if they’re seeing a change in their son or daughter’s personality, that’s something they can notice at home and it’s very, very important to bring it to people’s attention.”
With heightened concern over brain injuries comes heightened responsibility for everyone involved with high school athletics. Under the new guidelines, the first reaction to a head injury will now have significant consequences.
If a trainer, coach or official judges that an athlete has a concussion, then what Riggott calls “the head-injury process” starts. That athlete must immediately come out of the practice or game and see a physician or nurse practitioner for an initial examination. The athlete must then remain symptom-free for seven days and see the physician or nurse practitioner again to begin the process of getting back on the field. From there, Riggott must put the athlete through an “exertion test” in which the heart rate is raised without a recurrence of symptoms. The athlete then must go through four more steps of gradually increasing participation in their sport over a series of days before they are cleared to return.
The process lasts about two weeks. If at any time they experience concussion symptoms, the entire process starts over.
“It’s tough on the coaches because there is just no bending the rules,” Riggott said. “That’s it. If you suspect an athlete has a head injury, then the head-injury process has to start and that can come from a trainer, coach or referee.
“It’s easier with my kids, because I know them and know what they are like. It’s harder with kids from an away team that I don’t know. But if I seriously think they have a head injury and I start that process then they’re done.”
While there may be some concern that a quick decision on a head injury that is not in any way serious may lead to two weeks on the sideline for a perfectly healthy athlete, Riggott said the coaches understand the need for caution.
“I talked with the guys yesterday at the first practice about it,” first-year Waltham High football coach John Bourque said. “Our motto was that friends don’t let friends play concussed. I don’t care if we’re on the goal line going in for a touchdown, if someone is dizzy and not feeling right they have to let me know and I have to get him out of the game.
“I can’t look at everyone before every play to make sure they are all right, but if the kids help me out then collectively we can make sure that everyone is safe.”
(Scott Souza can be reached at 781-398-8006 or ssouza@wickedlocal.com.)