[Back In The Saddle]

Rather than starting a new thread, I'll bump this one.

Regarding, the POE on concussion: it appears that this is aimed squarely at coaches, or is it? Surely the committee doesn't intend for officials to be contacting parents/guardians about an athlete's apparent concussion nor to carry and distribute this fact sheet they mention?

It appears to me that our responsibility reasonably extends no further than:

1. Remove athlete from play.

and

4. Allow the athlete to return to play only with permission from an appropriate health care professional.

Or do we even get involved that much?

Are we really expected to remove an athlete from play? We're not medical professionals, but it sounds as though we're being asked to take a whack at making a diagnosis. While bleeding and unconsciousness are both pretty black and white, concussion isn't.

So if we notice one of the listed warning signs, assuming we've bothered to memorize them, what is our responsibility? Do we simply alert the coach? Do we remove the player from the game ourselves? What if we bring it to the coach's attention and he/she disagrees? What if we feel strongly that the athlete may be suffering from a concussion? Do we force the issue? What if the opposing coach, out of genuine concern or dubious tactics, makes an issue of this?

And what about this "permission from an appropriate health care professional"? What does that mean? Do we need a note? If so, who can sign it? MD, DO, PA, RN, LPN, paramedic, EMT? What about a dentist? Is verbal permission adequate? If so, to whom is this permission communicated? Are we required to be involved at all? If we are, what if the kid's coach takes him out and we don't even know about it?

Where this is a POE rather than a rule change, does that imply any additional liability for the official?

This POE seems to raise a lot of questions to which we don't have answers.