I never shy away from linking or mentioning other concussion websites, I feel it is up to the reader to decide where they want to spend their time and get their information. This video is from Mothers4ConcussionAwareness.org and gives a background on what they do;
-
Follow
Following
Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
The Concussion Blog 
Dustin, I’m enjoying your vacation video series.
I’ve read his grandson’s story before, and believe it illustrates the need for changes to how youth practices are run. Yesterday, there was media coverage of limitations to contact during practice that Pop Warner is putting in place:
http://www.sportsconcussions.org/ibaseline/pop-warner-limits-contact-practices-2.html
I hope other youth football organizations, as well as the independent youth football leagues, make similar changes. At this point, I truly question whether collision sports are appropriate for youth under certain ages, however, since those sports are currently being played by very young children, it’s encouraging to hear that some limitations on contact are being put in place.
Another Pop Warner link:
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/story/2012-06-12/pop-warner-renews-safety-emphasis/55557270/1
“… already there is debate among coaches about whether the measures go too far or not far enough.”
“”The impact of head-to-head contact causes the most severe concussions, so we felt it was imperative that Pop Warner take a proactive approach and limit contact in practices,” said Julian Bailes, chairman of the Pop Warner medical advisory board. “We’re trying to take away all at once the head-to-head contact in practice.””
Interesting interview:
http://www.npr.org/2012/06/07/154509586/is-football-safe-for-young-players
“MARTIN: Parents come and say, Coach, should my child play? What do you say?
DEANE: I say, absolutely. In the program, the Silver Spring Saints that we have, we’re part of a league that has mandated through USA Football, which is the governing body of the nation’s youth football programs, they have mandated that we replace all helmets 10 years or older. So the first thing that I will tell a parent is, we are on the right path, the path to make sure that they have the proper equipment to participate in the sport.
But coupled with that is we have – our coaches go through the certification online with USA Football to make sure they understand how to coach tackling, how to coach blocking, how to make sure that you take your head out of the equation when it comes to, like coach said, these collisions.
Parents may very well say, you know, well, you know, I think I’ll let my kid wait until, you know, 10, 14 years old. Then they will be at a decided disadvantage when it comes to participating against kids that may have played when they were eight years old.
Just by the techniques and the skills that we take the kids through each and every day at practice, it’s vitally important that we get them out there, but we coach them the right way.
MARTIN: So you can look a parent in the face and in good conscience, say, I think that your son can play this sport – there are a few girls who play, but mostly boys – and it is safe enough that you as a parent yourself feel that you can ethically advise people to continue in this sport?
DEANE: Absolutely, absolutely. As a matter of fact, I have a son who does play football, so…
MARTIN: All right.
DUBOSE: I agree totally…”
Demostration of new Pop Warner rules … does anyone know … is it three feet or three yards that players can be apart?
http://www.11alive.com/video/default.aspx?bctid=1688185471001
Reaction to Pop Warner rule changes:
http://www.11alive.com/rss/article/244671/166/Local-Reaction-to-Pop-Warner-rule-changes-
“No full speed head-on blocking or tackling drills in which the players line up more than 3 yards apart are permitted.”
“At least two metro Atlanta football leagues say they’re looking at similar changes.
The Dekalb Yellow Jackets in Lithonia say players should expect more emphasis on avoiding concussion when practices begin next month.
Football director Anthony Hipp’s son suffered a concussion playing high school football.
“When I saw that, it put everything in a new light,” said Hipp. “Now I’m on the other end. That’s my son laying on the ground.”
The president of the Cobb Football League says he’ll reccomend the same changes Pop Warner has made for the upcoming season.”
http://www.sportsconcussions.org/ibaseline/not-as-simple-as-it-seems.html
“On August 29th, my eleven-year-old grandson, Parker Disraeli, was injured during football practice in the common one-on-one drill known as the Oklahoma Drill. One tackler, one ball carrier, stand 5 to 10 yards apart and the goal is to tackle the runner, then switch positions. This is a repetitive drill and when you split the 22 team roster in two you will have many more repetitions. Parker went down in a head-to-head hit after maybe 7 to 8 turns.
Parker felt dazed when he was hit. The coaches called for a water break right afterward and Parker went to the sidelines, took off his helmet, and sat on it. The coaches told me as I went to join him that Parker took a pretty good lick.
He was a little foggy, had a headache, answered my questions slowly, had no energy and didn’t feel right. A dad came over and said he was hit pretty hard. His balance and memory were fine. We watched about 10 minutes of the practice when it started again, helmet off. The coaches and I agreed “not return to practice” in fact, we agreed to leave and go home. We went to the doctor the next day.”
http://www.sportsconcussions.org/ibaseline/concussion-age-11-part-ii.html
“We had a major set back. On Friday morning Parker and his class were given a math test, he is a A student in advanced classes, this normally would be an easy test for him to complete.
It wasn’t, he could not handle the test, he was sent to the nurse’s office as he did not look good and was suffering from a bad headache. I had to go get him at 9:30 am, he could not hang on until noon. I would like to mention that if your child has to cut down on his class attendance you can apply for help. Your Doctor needs to be involved as well as your Principal, but this is a helpful solution if applicable.”
http://www.sportsconcussions.org/ibaseline/concussion-age-11-week-5.html
“We are happy to report that Parker has been cleared to “return to practice and play” by the doctors at Children’s Hospital of Atlanta. We are following the “return to play” recommendations of the CDC “Heads Up Program” and the Children’s Sports Medicine Program. This is a step-by-step program that calls for slowly getting the injured athlete back in the game.
We started with limited practice in week four with permission from the doctors (helmet only, no contact drills). We are now in full practice and full play here in week five. There are still some restrictions, but we are following the rules outlined in the “Return to Play” materials.”