Risk Management
Consequences of Concussion in Schoolboy Rugby: The Role of Occupational Therapy
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Faye Sinnett
Rugby is a popular contact sport in which concussion occurs frequently. Although concussion protocols are now in place, there is limited research that indicates whether there are long term consequences due to these injuries. The consequences of concussion in schoolboys from playing rugby have been reported to effect their occupational performance in Education. The aim of the study is to explore the consequences of concussion as a result of schoolboy rugby on occupational performance using a review of the literature. A literature search using various databases in sports medicine, neuropsychology, neuropsychiatry, education, and occupational therapy was done. The search terms included occupational therapy, concussion, schoolboy rugby, sports injury, occupational and academic performance. A small number of articles were specific to concussion as a result of schoolboys playing rugby and therefore pediatric sports-related concussion articles were included. Consequences of a concussion that influence occupational performance include decreased school attendance, academic performance, social participation, and decreased cognitive processing. No articles could be found in occupational therapy literature related to the consequences of concussion or relating to consequences in occupational performance areas other than academic performance. There is no clear description of the role of OT in the prevention and rehabilitation of consequences of concussive injury in schoolboy's playing rugby, therefore, the role occupational therapy in prevention and treatment of concussion in schoolboys post rugby injuries has not been explored and is unknown.
Does Restorative Justice Have a Place in Anti-Doping?
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Ophir Sefih, Joao Salm
The work of anti-doping regulators, most notably the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), focus on the harmonization of anti-doping rules and practices across international sport. While resources are devoted to anti-doping education, science, and public awareness, most funding is reserved for testing and enforcement. Scholars have argued that current policies and practices present athletes as an inherent risk population and in need of increasing surveillance and testing, consequently engendering harms not only to athletes but the wider sport community. Research indicates that professional and elite level athletes across many sports are skeptical and somewhat distrustful of anti-doping efforts, viewing them as ineffective and exclusionary. Unsurprisingly, this environment has strained relations between athletes and anti-doping regulators and engendered not only suspicion but varying levels of shame and trauma, while being weighted heavily in favor of regulators. In light of the current climate, we propose a road map for determining if the application of restorative justice principles and practices may offer a useful approach to address the limitations that exist within the anti-doping environment. When applied properly, we believe that restorative principles and practices can foster and strengthen a more balanced and equitable relationship among not only athletes and regulators, but others involved in the sport ecosystem including medical professionals, media, and support personnel.
Crisis Management at USA Gymnastics
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Joseph Eric Massey, Jihane Benazzouz
On August 4, 2016, USA Gymnastics began to experience an organizational crisis when the Indianapolis Star (IndyStar) published the first in a series of reports that shed light on the history of USA Gymnastics’ failure to alert the authorities to a number of sexual assaults perpetrated by Dr. Larry Nassar. Once that first news story appeared, many victims of Nassar came forward, precipitating USA Gymnastics’ crisis from which it continues to recover. In this paper, we analyze the crisis experienced by USA Gymnastics as well as its crisis management efforts. This analysis will be shaped through a conceptual framework focused on crisis management, crisis response, and reputation management. USA Gymnastics experienced a sustained, reputational, and preventable crisis. Based on our case study analysis, USA Gymnastics’ crisis response proved to be too little too late. Because of that, its reputation was tarnished. Indeed, the Nassar scandal resulted in great damage to USA Gymnastics’ corporate reputation and the loss of many key executives, who were either fired or forced to resign to try and recover from the damage to the organization’s reputation.
Mortality, Position, and Padded Playing Time among National Football League Players
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Brittany Kmush, Madeline Hilton, Justin Ehrlich, Arthur H Owora, Bhavneet Walia, Shane Sanders
Long-term adverse health outcomes, particularly those associated with sub-concussive blows are of growing concern among American football players. Certain NFL player attributes such as position of play, along with padded practice and field time, are likely to be strong risk factors for health outcomes. We present a preliminary analysis of mortality rates and the association of mortality with padded practice regulations instituted by the NFL and NFL Players Association. Data was collected from Pro Football Reference (http://pro-football-reference.com). Time spent in padded practice and field time was calculated from the corresponding NFL Players Association Collective Bargaining Agreement. Playing position was divided into three categories (category 1: defensive back, quarterback, wide receiver, and kicker; category 2: running back, linebacker, tight end; category 3: offensive and defensive linemen). As of July 2018, 24,860 NFL players were available for analysis. Of those, 6,603 (26.6%) had a reported date of death. Years of birth ranged from 1876-1996 and years of death from 1923-2018. The average life expectancy from birth was 79.5 years (95% CI:79.2-79.8) and the incidence rate of death was 3.94 per 1000 person-years (95% CI: 3.82-4.06). No differences in risk of death were observed by position category after adjustment for birth year, BMI, and height; increasing BMI and birth year were statistically associated with increased hazard of death (p<0.05). These results are consistent with previously published results. Ongoing analysis aims to quantify the association between time spent by NFL athletes in padded practice and game play environments and life expectancy.
