Concussion Information
 
 
There has been an enormous amount of interest and publicity related to the number of concussions that are occurring in athletics. This certainly is and has been a concern for all. As some may know, all of our coaches must and are CPR and AED certified while some also have First Aid certification. Additionally, just recently, the National Federation of High Schools has offered an online class titled “Concussion in Sports-What You Need To Know,” a class that we have required all of our coaches to take and I am delighted to say that we are almost at 100 % compliance with our coaches taking this course.
 
Although we have done much to deal with the concussion issue in athletics within the district, we have done more. In April 2011, the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, which is the governing body of high school athletics in New Jersey, has developed a policy in which they are asking each member school to develop a concussion identification, management, and return to play policy to be implemented in their district. This informative document must be shared with those students and their parents who are participating in athletics with signatures required of the student athlete and their families.
 
I am happy to say that this new document, which will be required of all students wishing to tryout and participate in school athletics, is now available for download by clicking here for your review. 
 
 
For LHS Athletes Only 
The second item of importance also deals with concussions in athletics and more specifically, the ImPACT Concussion Management Program. This internet computer based program is widely used by high schools and other groups to develop a baseline testing score for each participating athlete. Each student will be asked to take this 30 minute computer test here at the high school in our computer labs, which will measure certain items as attention span, memory, response, and problem solving. Once this baseline score is in place for each child, we will be able to use this data to retest the student 24-48 hours post injury in the event there is suspicion of a concussion. That data can be used to evaluate the students condition with results forwarded to personal physicians, if requested.  Consent forms for ImPACT can be downloaded here.
 
In order for your child to be part of this program, parental permission will be necessary and a sign off form will follow however at this point we just wanted to inform everyone that this program is about to be put into place. More details will follow in the immediate future.
 
If you would like to know more about ImPACT, please go to their website at www.impacttest.com.  Again….students and their families, please fill out the form and return it immediately to your coach.
 
Pat Genova
LHS Athletic Director
 
 
Last Modified on March 13, 2012