As we head into enrollment season for Student Accident coverages, we’ve come across some interesting statistics for sports-related injuries. What parents and your school administrators don’t want to hear is that the Journal of Pediatrics published a study reporting a 92% increase in pediatric visits to hospital emergency rooms for sports-related traumatic brain injuries between 2002 and 2011. What you and your families will want to know is that the severity of these cases appears to be decreasing.
The Centers for Disease and Prevention estimates there are more than half a million ER visits annually for traumatic brain injury in children, and sports-related head injury is a significant contributor to these visits. The sport with the most related injuries may come to no surprise to you—football. (Although, horseback riding is the leading recreational sport resulting in head trauma.) The good news is, signs of concussions are being taken more seriously, meaning head injuries are being treated before they worsen.
ABCnews reported that the increased awareness of concussions has enpowered parents with the information to participate in their child’s illness. It’s also given coaches heightened awareness, making schools more proactive about treating potential head injuries.
Just what are the signs of a head concussion? According to WebMD, the signs of a brain concussion fall into four main categories—thinking and remembering, physical, emotional and mood, and sleep.
Thinking and remembering
- Not thinking clearly
- Feeling slowed down, sluggish
- Not being able to concentrate
- Not being able to remember new information
Physical
- Headache
- Fuzzy or blurry vision
- Nausea and vomiting
- Dizziness
- Sensitively to light or noise
- Balance problems
- Feeling tired or having no energy
Emotional and mood
- Easily upset or angered
- Sad
- Nervous or anxious
- More emotional than typical
Sleep
- Sleeping more than usual
- Sleeping less than usual
- Having a hard time falling asleep
For players who have sustained a head injury during play, it’s important to remove them from the game right away. If the child has lost consciousness, decreased alertness, seizures, persistent vomiting, changes in behavior, worsening headaches, or any condition that deteriorates, take no chances and have them seen by emergency care.
For coaches and risk managers looking to add another layer of protection for their athletic students, there is an app worth looking into. Impact is an online test used by coaches professionally as well as on school and club levels for testing players with head trauma for potential concussions.
As Risk Manager, you should also know your school’s liability for sports-related accidents. You should have a robust injury prevention plan as part of your overall risk management protocol, but you can also reduce your risks with student accident insurance. There are several ways you can insure your school—self-insurance, optional or voluntary coverage, mandatory coverage, catastrophic coverage, and special risk coverage. For more information about these different coverage options, read Students, Accidents, and Your School’s Liability.
Top ten sports-related head-injury categories among children ages 14 and younger:
- Cycling 40,272
- Football 21,878
- Baseball and softball 18,246
- Basketball 14,783
- Water sports 12,843
- Soccer 8,392
- Powered recreational vehicles 6,818
- Winter sports 6,750
- Trampolines 5,025
Additional ISM articles of interest
ISM’s Monthly Update for Risk Managers Vol. 2 No. 5 Students, Accidents, and Your School’s Liability
ISM’s Monthly Update for Business Managers Vol. 10 No. 4 Student Accident Insurance: Should Your School Protect Its Students Or Leave It Up to the Parents?
ISM’s Monthly Update for Risk Managers Vol. 1 No. 4 Managing Athletic Risk: Checklist For Faculty and Staff
Additional ISM articles of interest for Gold Consortium members
I&P Vol. 35 No. 12 Does Your Crisis Plan Really Protect Your Students and School?
