That was the message from Education Minister, John O’Dowd, and Sports Minister, Carál Ní Chuilín today as they jointly launched a new leaflet and poster campaign highlighting the dangers of concussion in children and young people.
Starting today, informative leaflets and posters will be distributed to children, schools and sports clubs across the north. Teachers and coaches will also receive a pocket Concussion Recognition Tool™ to help them identify indicators of the head injury.
The materials were developed, in English and Irish, by the Department of Education and Department of Culture Arts and Leisure, with input from the Chief Medical Officer and the Health and Safety Executive NI.
Speaking at the launch event at the Queen’s Sport Upper Malone complex, Minister O’Dowd said: “Playing sport and keeping active is a natural and normal part of life for many children and young people. I strongly believe in supporting children to keep fit and active, but it is equally important we take all possible steps to keep them safe when doing so.
“A child can sustain a head injury in many different situations: it could be while playing sport, even one with minimal contact or from a fall in the playground, corridor or even the classroom. I therefore want to make sure that schools, teachers and children themselves are well informed about the risks that can arise from injuries to the head.
“This is why I wrote to all schools last November to highlight the dangers of concussion and why I have worked with my Executive colleagues to produce these important leaflets and posters so that the message is clear – ‘Recognise and Remove’.
“I want young people, teachers and coaches to be able to recognise the signs of concussion. Teachers and sports coaches are being given a special pocket-sized Concussion Recognition Tool™ to help them spot the signs of the injury. My message is really simple: take no risks, if a young person displays any of the signs of concussion, then they should be removed immediately from whatever activity they are involved in.
“My focus on concussion comes after the tragic death in 2011 of Benjamin Robinson following a head injury he sustained while playing a school rugby match. I am committed to doing all I can as Education Minister to make sure that no such devastating loss happens again.”
Sports Minister Carál Ní Chuilín said: “It is vitally important that we educate teachers and coaches to be able to recognise the signs of concussion. Whilst playing sport is vital for children to lead healthy and active lives, it is equally important to ensure that they are protected whilst playing sport.
“The loss of Benjamin Robinson in 2011 was a tragic loss for his family and the wider school and rugby communities and I am sure that this campaign will help to ensure that losses like this will not happen again.
“His parents Karen and Peter have been to the forefront in raising awareness of the dangers associated with concussion and the message is clear, remove the child from the field of play if they are displaying any signs of concussion.
“It may not be immediately apparent that a player is suffering from concussion so it is therefore crucial that everyone makes themselves aware of the symptoms of concussion, whether you are a teacher, coach, parent or indeed team-mate.”
Several family members and friends of Benjamin Robinson attended the launch event. Benjamin’s family have stated: “The tragic thing about Benjamin’s death is that it was preventable. During his rugby match, he clearly showed signs and symptoms of concussion and was assessed on three occasions but was permitted to carry on. We have learnt that with children we have to err on the side of caution and, ‘if in doubt, sit them out’.
“Education regarding concussion is paramount and the NI Executive has been fully supportive of this aim. The common message now is that concussion can be fatal – ‘Recognise and Remove’. This new leaflet, along with the posters and pocket Concussion Recognition Tool™, will protect children from the short term and long-term dangers of concussion. This leaflet will save lives.”
Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Dr Paddy Woods said: “Most children who sustain a head injury will recover fully and quickly, but sadly for some children a head injury can be very serious. It is important to make sure that children, their parents and other adults responsible for them are made aware that any child who suffers a head injury and shows any signs of concussion should be removed from activity, including sports, and assessed by a qualified person.
“Concussion does not have to be associated with loss of consciousness; any change in behaviour or feeling confused or unwell after a head injury should be considered as potential concussion. Local doctors have been involved in the development of the ‘Recognise and Remove’ leaflet and the advice in the leaflet is in line with guidance for doctors on how to assess and manage children and young people with head injuries. I hope the leaflets and posters will highlight the important message to recognise concussion, remove from activity and get assessed.”
Around 800,000 leaflets, 15,000 posters and 25,000 laminated copies of the pocket Concussion Recognition Tool™ have been printed and are being distributed to schools and sports clubs from today.
More information and downloadable versions of the leaflet and poster are available here.