Brain Injury Alliance Of Nebraska Promotes Concussion Awareness For The New School Year

As summer winds down and the new school year gets underway, so begin new sports seasons for many student-athletes across the state. It’s a grand time of excitement, hard work, and accomplishment. However, with these positives also comes the risk of injuries, specifically, concussions.

According to the 2020-2021 High School Sports-Related Injury Surveillance Study by High School RIO TM , head/face and concussion injuries accounted for approximately 15.6 percent (191,638) of the 1.2 million injuries reported, a number second only to ankle-related injuries. This tracks with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)’s report from 2019 where 15 percent of teens self-reported one or more sports and recreation-related concussions within the past 12 months.

Concussions not only sideline student-athletes in their respective sports, but they can also sideline them in the classroom–especially if left untreated and unmanaged. An article from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) notes that 5 out of 10 concussions go unreported. This can lead to prolonged symptoms and issues such as lowered impulse and emotional control, sensitivity to light and sound, difficulty concentrating, and memory problems–making it challenging for students to succeed in the classroom. Often, assistance is needed to help the recovery process along and not put excess strain on the student’s healing brain. However, according to a recent article in the Journal of School Health, only 22.3 percent of educators feel confident in their ability to recognize a concussion and only 34 percent feel confident enough to help manage symptoms/recovery plans. Therefore, it is important for parents, coaches, and educators to be able to recognize and help manage concussions and concussion symptoms.

To help parents and educators with concussion recognition and management, the Brain Injury Alliance of Nebraska offers helpful tools and resources for recognizing and managing concussions such as the Heads Up Concussion flyer series developed by the CDC, the TACT Concussions and COVID Tool from Get Schooled on Concussions, and the R.E.A.P. Manual developed by Dr. Karen McAvoy.

Heads Up Concussion fliers outline the key concussion signs and symptoms to look for in a variety of age groups from elementary ages all the way up through high school. These fliers as well as additional concussion information can be found at https://www.cdc.gov/headsup/index.html.

For educators, the TACT tool is a great resource for helping ease students who experienced a concussion or long COVID-19 back into the classroom by providing implementable tips and strategies for concussion management in the classroom. The Brain Injury Alliance of Nebraska and the Nebraska Concussion Coalition provide free subscriptions for teachers across the state. To access the TACT Tool, visit: https://www.getschooledonconcussions.com/nebraska/ and enter the password TACTnebraska2020.

The R.E.A.P. ( Remove/Reduce | Educate | Adjust/Accommodate | Pace) Manual is a community-based model for developing Concussion Management Teams to identify and manage concussions–allowing the community to work together to help students recover and return to learning after a concussion. Parents, educators, and other community members can access the manual at: https://biane.org/concussion-recognition-and-management/concussion-awareness.html

Executive Director, Peggy Reisher, comments “As youth begin this school year, it is important to remember they are students first and players second. If youth get concussed on the field, in the gym, or simply in the community, we want them to have the tools they need to be successful in the classroom.”