Concussion Rule in Ohio

[Eastshire]

Originally Posted by ajmc

This same concern comes up regularly warning about all sorts of calamities, but the bottom line is that not a whole lot, if anything, has changed, other than we're asked, and therefore expected, to be more vigilant.

NFHS 3-5-10 covers our responsibilities. The key phrase is in 3-5-10-a; "An apparently injured player is discovered by a game official.......sets the tone. Recognizing we are NOT medical professionals, the bar for generating concern, is set rather low. "Apparently injured" doesn't require a lot of diagnostic expertise and seems more a "common sense" guide.

For whatever reason, if an official doesn't like the way a player acts, behaves looks or otherwise raises concern for a players physical condition, he is authorized and encouraged to remove the player from the contest for evaluation by a medical professional, who will render a diagnosis and is responsible to decide if that player is medically fit to continue participating.

If in what should be a [U]"rare" exception [/U]the player authorized to return, continues to raise an officials concern, he is authorized to require reevaluation, to the point where concern is eliminated. Could that lead to overly anxious abuse? Possibly, but extremely doubtful.

In what should be the rarest of circumstances, where for some reason an official seriously rejects the medical decision of the designated medical personnel, can the official insist on additional clarification? Being right isn't always easy, but if there is serious enough concern, being right is correct

3-5-10-b focuses on symptoms common to "Concussions" and calls for additional scrutiny by officials and enhanced reactions to have a suspected player observed quickly, and raises the requirements for the player returning. Once again, if a player is certified to return, and continues to exhibit symptoms alarming an official, he is authorized to refer the player for additional evaluation.

The bottom line, sometimes difficult to remember is that we are charged with acting responsibly about the potential health and well being of children. Even after staying in a Holiday Inn Express, we are not medical professionals and in all but the absolute rarest of circumstances, should the medical professionals responsible for the game we are officiating, somehow, be unable to relieve our medical concerns and persuade us that their expertise is superior to our concerns, we should do what's right.

At some point early in this dispute, I would suggest seeking guidance from crew members to help evaluate your concerns.

However, the rules are overridden by the law in Ohio. An apparently concussed player may not participate further that day regardless of medical evaluation and may only return after that day after being cleared by a doctor. I didn't see the game in question, but if you can tell from the video or the stands that a player was apparently concussed, it seems likely that the law was broken. If that is the case, the coaches and the officials could find themselves in some legal trouble.