Prevention of Injury Minimising Risk : Appropriate Level of Competition; Clothing / Footwear; Correct Technique; Knowledge of Safety Procedures; Lifting / Carrying Correctly; Personal Protective Equipment; Rules / Codes / Laws; Warm up / Cool Down

Appropriate Level of Competition Participation Participation = activity + participants The elements on the right hand side of this equation must be matched or appropriate. Appropriateness should be based on: AGESEXPHYSICAL SIZE / WEIGHT In most cases there are clear guidelines laid down by school sports governing bodies. At other times it comes down to commonsense and careful monitoring eg MSF not a good mixed activity

Age Wherever Wherever possible players should compete in the appropriate age group. They should always participate in the correct age group in the following cases: Physical contact activities Competitive participation Age Age raises issues associated with the risk of injury, the likelihood of fair play and the demotivation of students when competing against older players

Gender Most Most sports have traditionally been single sex. Many of the reasons for this are no longer considered to be valid and certain changes have taken place: More More sports are now played by men and women eg netball, cricket, rugby, basketball, football Some Some sports are actually played as mixed eg equestrian events, shooting, archery, hockey sports are played as mixed sports until a certain age group eg association football, netball

Size / Weight This This is recognised and legislated for in only a small number of sports eg boxing, weightlifting, wrestling. In other activities size can be used to gain advantage without penalty.  Until  Until relatively recently there has been little concern over the potential danger resulting from size disparity.  Teachers  Teachers in UK schools must take action to ensure that size mis-matches in lessons are minimised if not removed completely.  Size  Size is the most crucial of the 3 in terms of injury prevention

Footwear Inappropriate Inappropriate footwear is potentially a hazard eg smooth trainers on wet grass, unlaced boots Some Some activities need technically specialised footwear eg ….? Other provide protection eg….? In some cases both are important eg skiing Why Why are earrings, necklaces, zips, buckles potentially dangerous?

Correct Technique Important Important in context of injury prevention. Give Give some examples where poor technique could be dangerous. some examples of activities which should not be attempted without first attaining some level of competency.

Knowledge of Appropriate Safety Procedures In In order to conduct activities safely the following are required: –General –General risk assessment –Identification –Identification of specific hazards –Injury –Injury prevention policies / procedures Identify some specific issues that you feel are of relevance in terms of safety for one of your nominated activities

Personal Protective Equipment The The need to minimise risk of injury sometimes necessitates the wearing of protective equipment In In some activities it is compulsory to wear protective equip eg shinpads in football, helmet in cricket………. others it is a matter of discretion

Rules, Codes, Laws The rules of any sport should: The rules of any sport should: »Establish a set of procedures which is a clear basis for fair competition »Set clear guidelines as to acceptable and unacceptable practice and identify sanctions to be used against offenders Many sports involve physical contact or the use of dangerous implements and every player has a responsibility to control their own behaviour, irrespective of the nature of the activity or the provocation of others, both on and off the field of play

Warm up / Cool down A hastily executed warm up routine can result in pulled muscles, strained ligaments or damaged joints A hastily executed warm up routine can result in pulled muscles, strained ligaments or damaged joints Warm up - for good performance, avoiding injury Warm up - for good performance, avoiding injury Cool down – gradual recovery from physical exertion, gradual return to normal functioning levels, less likely to be sore or stiff Cool down – gradual recovery from physical exertion, gradual return to normal functioning levels, less likely to be sore or stiff

Personal Hygiene Rather Rather than avoiding injury, personal hygiene is necessary to reduce the risk of incapacity. There are a number of skin afflictions that are almost entirely the result of poor personal hygiene. The most common infections are: –Athlete’s –Athlete’s foot – a fungal infection usually affects the area between the toes or on soles of feet –Verrucae –Verrucae – caused by virus embedded in soles of feet

Minor Minor skin infections and skin conditions can be avoided: »Shower »Shower using soap after all physical activity »Dry »Dry off thoroughly before dressing »Never »Never wear same clothes, esp undergarments, during and after physical activity »All »All personal items of PE / sports clothing should be washed after use. Even mouth guards!

Correct Clothing / Footwear Clothing Clothing fulfils 3 major purposes: –An –An expression of identity (team strip) –Insulation –Insulation from the elements –Protection –Protection for the intended activity Is fashion relevant? What is appropriate in terms of modesty/cultural tradition? What is reasonable in terms of cost / availability