Introduction Letter
Dear Coach:
Each year, about 300,000 sports-related traumatic brain injuries occur in our country, and most can be classified as concussions. Concussions can occur in any sport—and all are serious injuries!
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), working in partnership with noted professional medical, sport, and educational organizations, is conducting an education initiative to help coaches
prevent, recognize, and manage concussion in high school sports. As part of this effort, we are pleased
to provide you with the enclosed tool kit, Heads Up: Concussion in High School Sports. It contains:
-
A concussion guide for coaches;
-
A coach’s wallet card on concussion for quick reference;
-
A coach’s clipboard sticker with concussion facts and space for emergency contacts;
-
A fact sheet for athletes in English and Spanish;
-
A fact sheet for parents in English and Spanish;
-
An educational video/DVD for you to show athletes, parents, and other school staff;
-
Posters to hang in the gym or locker room; and
-
A CD-ROM with additional resources and references.
High school coaches can use tool kit materials to:
-
Educate themselves, athletes, parents, and school officials about sports-related
concussion; and -
Work with school officials to develop an action plan for dealing with concussion
when it occurs.
Your views about the tool kit are invaluable to us and we invite you to share them with us. Please email your
comments to cdcinfo@cdc.gov with a subject line “Concussion Tool Kit.” The Heads Up tool kit can also be
ordered or downloaded free-of-charge at: www.cdc.gov/ncipc/tbi/Coaches_Tool_Kit.htm. We hope you
will include these materials as an integral part of your school’s athletic program.
Sincerely,
Ileana Arias, PhD
Director
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Director
Division of Injury and Disability Outcomes and Programs National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
PARTICIPATING PARTNERS
American Academy of PediatricsAmerican Association for Health Education
American College of Sports Medicine
American School Health Association
Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
Brain Injury Association of America
Institute for Preventative Sports Medicine
National Association for Sport and Physical Education
National Athletic Trainers Association
National Federation of State High School Associations
National Safety Council
North American Brain Injury Society
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Sports Medicine Concussion Program
U.S. Department of Education
REPRESENTING THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR INJURY PREVENTION AND CONTROL, CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION
- Jeanne Christensen, MPH
Victor Coronado, MD
Julie Gilchrist, MD
Arlene Greenspan, DrPH
Michele Huitric, MPH
Jean Langlois, ScD, MPH
Jane Mitchko, MEd
Wesley Rutland-Brown, MPH
EXPERT WORK GROUP
Walter Abercrombie
American Football Association
Robert C. Cantu, MD, MA, FACS, FACSM
National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research
Kyle J. Cassas, MD
Methodist Hospitals of Dallas
Michael Collins, PhD
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Center for Sports Medicine
Sports Concussion Program
Jerry Diehl
National Federation of State High School Associations
Sandra Dreker
Brain Injury Association of Florida
Kevin Guskiewicz, PhD, ATC
The University of North Carolina
Department of Exercise and Sport Science
Mary Hibbard, PhD
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Andy Jagoda, MD
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Mitzi Johnson, RN, MSN, NCSN
National Association of School Nurses
James P. Kelly, MD, FAAN
University of Colorado School of Medicine
David Klossner, PhD
National Collegiate Athletic Association
Mark Lovell, PhD
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Center for Sports Medicine
Sports Concussion Program
Stephen Macciocchi, PhD
Shepherd Center
Vito Perriello, MD
National Federation of State High School Association
David H. Perrin, PhD, ATC
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
School of Health and Human Performance
National Athletic Trainers’ Association
Frederick E. Reed, MD, FAAP
American Academy of Pediatrics
Jay Rosenberg, MD
Ricardo G. Senno, MD, MS, FAAPMR
Barbara Weissman, MD
Emory University School of Medicine
Department of Pediatrics
David Wright, MD
Emory University School of Medicine
Emergency Medicine Research Center
Contact Us:
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC)
4770 Buford Hwy, NE
MS F-63
Atlanta, GA 30341-3717 - 800-CDC-INFO
(800-232-4636)
TTY: (888) 232-6348
24 Hours/Every Day - cdcinfo@cdc.gov
