Coaching Our Kids to Fewer Injuries Advocacy Guide - Safe Kids ...

Safe Kids’ goalis to establisha program atthe local levelensuring that allcoachesare trained insports injuryprevention in thesports they coach.The lesson here is to have stories to tell about kids in your area who have been hurt by notfollowing best practices. It is effective to have parents or kids act as spokespeople, writeletters and op-ed articles, appear on electronic media, post on Facebook or even start a blog.4. Know Your Targets. Another kind of research that will be crucial is knowing aboutthe school board members you will be trying to convince.• What was their inspiration for running for the school board seat?• Were they child athletes, and what did they play?• Do they have kids who are in the school system or who graduated from it? Did theirkids play sports? Did they have any injuries?• What makes them tick? Are they sports fans?A Noteabout TonePlaying teamsports is fun, andwe don’t want totake the fun outof sports withthis campaign.Our intent is toemphasize thatsports can befun and safe.Involvement insports is also avital part of a kid’stime in school.Let’s make thiscampaign apartnership forsafety. The time toact is now.5. Build Your Network. There are always common interests with other organizations in acampaign to affect change, and on sports safety, some of your allies include the following:• Children’s Hospitals.• Universities with physical education degrees.• Athletic trainers.• Sports medicine physicians and their organizations• Parent-teacher organizations.• School nurses.• Active or retired coaches.What could really make a campaignlike this go viral would be a celebrity,e.g. a respected football player, as aspokesperson. The National FootballLeague has a significant program tocope with sports-related concussioninjuries. As of April 2012, at least 21of the 31 states passed concussion lawswith the support of the NFL or a proteamincluding California, Colorado,Texas, New Mexico, Maryland,Louisiana, Alabama and Missouri.In some states and towns, collegesports is the thing, and a star athletecan be an effective spokesperson.Also, check to see if any recent U.S.Olympic competitors live nearby.What’s a concussion?According to the Centers for Disease Controland Prevention, a concussion is a type oftraumatic brain injury (TBI), caused by a bump,blow, or jolt to the head that can change theway your brain normally works. Concussionscan also occur from a fall or a blow to the bodythat causes the head and brain to move quicklyback and forth. Even a “ding,” “getting yourbell rung,“ or what seems to be a mild bumpor blow to the head can be serious. You can’tsee a concussion but signs and symptoms ofconcussion can show up right after the injury ormay not appear or be noticed until days or weeksafter the injury. 1But remember: concussions are not the onlyinjuries sustained in sports.1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Injury Prevention& Control. Concussion and Mild TBI. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/concussion/ Accessed April 17, 2012.- 3 -