HB 2038 has the following major elements for compliance in the bill..
> The bill:
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> 1. Identifies and defines the licensed health care professionals, including athletic trainers, who are qualified to care for students suffering from concussion.
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> 2. Requires parents and students to sign an acknowledgement form that contains information about concussions and the effects of concussive injuries. This element has not been developed by the UIL as of 8-1-2011. There is an addition to the UIL Acknowledgement of rules, with new information in the Parent Manual to suffice for this year.
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> It is recommended you develop a document for your school district until the UIL develops this document. There are examples of this document from the school district athletic trainers listed below.
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> 3. Specifies immediate removal of student athletes suspected of suffering from a concussion. The student athlete suspected of suffering a concussion must be evaluated by a physician of his/her choosing and given written clearance for his/her return to play.
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> It is recommended that you discuss this requirement in your coaching staff meetings.
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> 4. Requires parents to sign:
> (1) a disclosure form that complies with the Health Insurance Portability Act of 1996 and the Family Educational Right to Privacy Act of 1974 to allow disclosure of return to play information and recommendations of the treating physician.
> (2) a parental consent and information form regarding the return to play protocol for the treating physician,
> (3) a parental verification form the student athlete has participated in the required steps outlined in the school district's return to play protocol,
> (4) a parent information sheet outlining the immunity provisions included in the bill.
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> You can get examples of these forms from the school district athletic trainers listed below.
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> 5. Directs school districts to establish a physician-led concussion oversight team responsible for the development of a return to play protocol to be a minimum standard for student athletes suffering from concussions. The members of this team must have documented concussion management training by September 1, 2012.
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> It is recommended that you develop this protocol, and locate a physician who will serve as the concussion oversight team leader for your school district.
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> 6. Establishes an education requirement for coaches, continuing education requirements for athletic trainers, and recommended continuing education expectations for physicians serving on the concussion oversight team.
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> There will be more information on these education requirements for coaches coming from the Texas Education Agency. Athletic trainers will need documentation of two hours of concussion management education every two years. Any Advisory Board approved CEU Symposium that has specific concussion management sections will meet these requirements.
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> The following athletic trainers are willing to share their school districts policies and procedures:
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> Bucky Taylor, Mesquite ISD; btaylor@...<mailto:btaylor@...>
> Dennis Hart, Mesquite ISD, dhart@...<mailto:dhart@...>
> Scott Galloway, Desoto ISD, sgalloway@...<mailto:sgalloway@...>

Here is NATA's list of seven basic recommendations for safe weight loss and management practice:

1.) A body-composition assessment, which is a scientific and objective method of estimating lean body mass and fat mass, should be used to determine a body weight consistent with safety, good health and optimal performance in weight-classification sports. This process takes no longer than 10 minutes, Sammarone Turocy says, and should be administered by a trained individual.

2.) Progress toward reaching the target weight based on body-composition tests should be assessed at regular intervals by repeating the tests.

3.) Weight gain or loss should not occur at excessive rates; it should be steady and at a consistent and safe rate (one or two pounds per week for weight reduction). Additionally, weight loss should not exceed 1.5 percent of body weight per week.

4.) Both diet and exercise should be used as part of the strategy to change body weight. Weight management should follow the training plans and goals of athletes and other physically active individuals.

5.) Enough calories taken in from all food groups should occur during weight change. Metabolism and energy needs for physical activity must be considered in developing the diet.

6.) Education on safe dietary and weight-management practices should be conducted on a regular and planned basis, and the involvement of trained nutrition, health and weight-management experts such as athletic trainers or other health professionals is highly recommended. Coaches, peers and family members should not provide information or participate in diet, body-composition or weight-management practices, and they should refrain from making comments about them. "Coaches can be supportive, but it is their job to bring in someone else to provide the education," Sammarone Turocy says, adding that certified athletic trainers and local pediatric or orthopedic physicians are ideal for that task.

7.) Athletes should be cautious with the use of dietary supplements and ergogenic aids for weight management, or any techniques that lead to rapidly changing body weight through unsubstantiated methods of weight reduction. Consideration of a sport's governing body's ruling on such supplements must be given. (The NATA currently is working on a position statement regarding supplements.)

GSU goes high-tech to protect players
Doug Roberson, Chip Towers; Staff

In a precautionary measure, Georgia State last year began using a new technology aimed at preventing players from suffering heat exhaustion, dehydration and other conditions that can occur when football coincides with hot temperatures.Players wear tiny sensors in their helmets that transmit their temperatures to a handheld device carried by one of Georgia State's athletic trainers. When a player's temperature reaches 102.5 degrees, a signal goes off on the device.The body's normal temperature is 98.6 degrees and between 99-100 when wearing a helmet. A person can suffer a heat stroke at 104 degrees. Two high school players in the state died recently after collapsing during football workouts. The cause of their deaths hasn't been determined. Bob Murphy, Georgia State's associate athletic director for medicine and nutrition, carried one of the devices, made by Hothead Technologies, during Thursday's first practice in unseasonably cool weather. During a practice or game, each player's temperature is checked and transmitted to the handheld device every 30 seconds.However, Murphy doesn't have to wait for their temperature to hit 102.5. When he notices a player's temperature spiking, he will pull them out of practice. The player has to take off his helmet, sit in the shade and drink plenty of fluids until his temperature reaches a safe level. He estimated that he pulled two players out of practice each week last season."It makes me feel comfortable that our young men are safe," athletic director Cheryl Levick said. August 5, 2011

uesday, June 21, 2011 Is North Carolina’s New Concussion Law Best in the Country? By Michael Popke — AB Managing Editor The Gfeller-Waller Concussion Act – named after two football players who died after suffering concussions in 2009 – was signed into law by North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue late last week. Every member of the state’s House and Senate endorsed the law, which head-injuries expert Kevin Guskiewicz calls the best in the country.

"It has such a strong educational component," Guskiewicz, a University of North Carolina professor and director of the Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center, told the Raleigh News & Observer. "I suspect we will hear from other states wanting to copy it."

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association adopted a concussion policy soon after Jaquan Waller, a junior at Greenville Rose High, and Matthew Gfeller, a sophomore at Winston-Salem Reynolds High, both died in August 2009 while playing football. The state’s Gfeller-Waller Act now extends protections into middle school athletics, as well as adds education and emergency planning requirements.

Similar to concussion laws in 20 other states, North Carolina’s law requires student-athletes at public high schools and middle schools to be removed from participation if there is a suspicion that the athlete has suffered a concussion. The student-athlete cannot return to participation until cleared by a medical professional – a mandate that might have saved Waller’s life. The running back received a concussion in practice on a Wednesday but two days later played in a game in which he was hit hard enough to induce second-impact syndrome. Unlike Waller, Gfeller's injury came from a single blow.

Additionally under the new law, public high school and middle school coaches, trainers, athletes and parents will receive information about concussions each year, and schools will be required to formulate emergency action plans. "These are things that we should have already been doing," Perdue told reporter Tim Stevens.

"Hopefully, what starts at the high school and middle school level filters down to Little League, Pop Warner and youth soccer," Guskiewicz added. "We absolutely have to eliminate the idea of someone having their bell rung or getting a little dinged. We have to raise the awareness of the severity of concussions, and this law does that."

At least one park and recreation organization has already attempted to tackle concussions. Grade school football players in New Jersey will undergo computerized cognitive baseline testing this fall under a new policy devised by the Franklin Lakes (N.J.) Recreation and Parks Committee and adopted by the Borough Council.

Nobody get hurt this weekend, all of the Athletic Trainers have headed to the Big Easy to learn, see, be seen, and preview what vendors are offering!