CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa got a concussion Thursday night against the Buffalo Bills. This has brought up the issue of keeping student athletes safe from head injuries again.
Head injuries can happen in any sport.
A North Carolina official in charge of health, safety, and wellness for high school athletes, Janna Fonseca, said, “It’s definitely been on the front burner for quite a few years here in North Carolina.”
Fonseca says that the athletic group has a duty to keep the conversation and awareness going.
“It’s just that constant re-education and awareness,” it was said. “Collectively it’s all our responsibility to have our eyes on these young people.”
According to Fonseca, the NCHSAA is following the Gfeller-Waller Concussion Awareness Act. When a concussion happens on the field, this procedure tells the teacher to move right away.
“Tell my athletes that we’re on their side.” We want you to be able to play sports again properly. A doctor with Atrium Health named Eric Warren, who is in charge of the Atrium Health Sports Medicine Network, said, “The worst thing we could do is send you back to sports early.”
Warren thinks that teaching athletes about concussions is making sports better for them.
Eric Warren, a doctor at Atrium Health and the medical head of the Atrium Health Sports Medicine Network, said, “We want their symptoms to go away at rest.” This is the first step to a full recovery.
“When they mentally work hard at school, work, or anywhere else, we want their symptoms to go away.” We want them to have no symptoms when they work out, and we start letting them play again slowly so they can get exercise. They should also have a normal physical check and look normal to other people.
That plan was repeated by Fonseca.
“It just takes innovative and creative ways to continue to get that information in front of the right people and make sure that they really understand the importance of recognizing those signs and symptoms early,” Fonseca added. “And not going back to play until they’ve been cleared by that licensed health care provider.”