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JJIF - MANAGEMENT OF CONCUSSIONS AND OTHER HEAD INJURIES

The Board recognizes that concussions and other head injuries are potentially serious and may result in significant brain damage and/or death if not recognized and managed properly. The Board adopts this policy to promote the safety of students participating in school sponsored extracurricular activities.

 

STUDENT AND PARENT INFORMATION:

Annually, at the beginning of the year, all parents/guardians of K-12 students who will be participating in school-sponsored athletic activities will be provided with information regarding:

  1. The risk of concussion and other head injuries and the dangers associated with continuing to participate when a concussion or other head injury is suspected.
  2. The signs and symptoms of concussion and other head injuries; and
  3. The school unit's protocol for 1) removal from the activity when a student is suspected of having sustained a concussion or other head injury; 2) evaluation; and 3) return to participation in the activity ("return to play").

The student and parent(s)/guardian(s) must sign a statement acknowledging that they have received and read the information in PowerSchool before the high school pre-season, or before the first day of school for all other students K-12 or before the student will be allowed to participate in school-sponsored athletic activities.

 

MANAGEMENT OF CONCUSSIVE AND OTHER HEAD INJURIES:

It is the responsibility of the staff member in charge of the activity to act in accordance with this policy when the staff member suspects that a student may be exhibiting signs, symptoms, and behaviors associated with a concussion or other head injury.

 

Any student suspected of having sustained a concussion or other head injury during a school­ sponsored activity including but not limited to competition, practice, or scrimmage, must be removed from the activity immediately. The student and their parent(s) will be informed of the need for evaluation for brain injury before the student will be allowed to return to activity.

 

No student will be permitted to return to the activity or to participate in any other school­ sponsored activity on the day of the suspected concussion.

 

Any student who is suspected of having sustained a concussion or other head injury shall be prohibited from further participation in school-sponsored activities until the student has been evaluated and received written medical clearance to do so from a licensed healthcare provider (an MD, DO, NP, or PA), not the parent of the student.

 

Coaches and other school personnel shall comply with the student's health care provider's recommendations in regard to return to learn and play. No student will be permitted to return to full participation until cleared to do so by a licensed healthcare provider, not the parent of the student. More than one evaluation by the student's licensed health care provider may be necessary before the student is cleared for full participation.

If at any time during the return to learn or play signs or symptoms of a concussion are observed, the student must be removed from participation and referred to the student’s licensed healthcare provider for re-evaluation.

 

COGNITIVE CONSIDERATIONS:

School personnel should be alert to cognitive and academic issues that may be experienced by students who have suffered a concussion or head injury, including but not limited to difficulty with concentration, organization, long-and-short term memory, and sensitivity to bright lights and sounds, and accommodate a gradual return to full participation as appropriate, based on the recommendations of the student's licensed health care provider and appropriate designated school personnel.

 

CONCUSSION MANAGEMENT TEAM:

The Superintendent will appoint a concussion management team including a school administrator to be responsible, under the administrative supervision of the Superintendent, to make recommendations related to implementations of this policy. The concussion management team will include the Athletic Director and school nurses and may include one or more principals or assistant principals, the school physician, and such other school personnel or consultants the Superintendent deems appropriate.

 

TRAINING:

By June 30 of each year, the Athletic Director will identify the school-sponsored athletic activities that pose a risk of concussion or other head injury. A list of these activities will be distributed to school administrators and coaches.

All staff, including volunteer coaches, must undergo annual training in the identification and management of concussive and other head injuries prior to assuming their coaching responsibilities. The training must be consistent with Cape Elizabeth School Department (CESD) concussion protocols and Maine DOE concussion protocols and include instruction in completion of all required forms.

Coaches shall be required to undergo refresher training every two years or when protocols and/or forms have been revised.

Cross Reference:

Adopted:

  • June 8, 2010

Revised:

  • October 9, 2018
  • November 14, 2023

 



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