Safety Person’s Responsibilities

The following are some responsibilities that the Safety Person should assume to prepare for potential injury to a player:

• Maintain accurate medical information files on all players and team officials and bring these to all team activities.
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• Maintain a Player Injury Log.
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• Maintain a fully stocked First Aid Kit and bring it to all team activities.
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• Implement an effective Emergency Action Plan with your team and practice it regularly to ensure all involved understand their roles and are prepared to act promptly when an incident occurs.
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• Recognize life-threatening and significant injuries, and be prepared to deal with serious injury.
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• Manage minor injuries according to basic injury management principles and refer players to medical professionals when necessary.
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• Recognize injuries that require a player to be removed from action. Refer players to medical professionals and coordinate return to play.
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• Facilitate communication with players, coaches, parents, physicians, therapists, paramedical personnel, officials and other volunteers regarding safety, injury prevention and player’s health status.

Act as a Safety Person for both your team and your opponents if only one Safety Person is present.

If a player is injured

The Charge Person will normally be the Safety Person, or the individual registered with your team with the most specialized training in injury care. As the Charge Person you have specific duties that include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Initially take control and assess the situation when coming into contact with the injured player.
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• Instruct the player to lay still.
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• Instruct bystanders to leave the injured player alone.
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• Do not move the athlete and leave all equipment in place.
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• Evaluate the injury and situation. This may include anything from an unconscious player to a sprained finger. Once you have determined the severity of the injury, decide whether or not an ambulance or medical care is required.
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• If the injury is serious and warrants immediate attention that you are not qualified to provide, seek out someone with the highest possible level of first aid/medical expertise.

Key Point: As the Safety Person you should be aware of those individuals on your team with these qualifications and arrange a signal should you need their assistance.

• If an ambulance is required, notify your Call Person with a pre-determined signal. Give a brief explanation of the injury, and tell them to call for an ambulance. Let the injured player know that an ambulance is being called and why. This could reduce fear and panic on the part of the player.
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• Once the call has been placed, observe the player carefully for any change in condition and try to calm and reassure the player until medical professionals arrive
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• STAY CALM. Keep an even tone in your voice.
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• Make a note of the time at which the injury occurred and keep track in writing of all pertinent facts regarding the accident, including time of occurrence, time of ambulance arrival, etc.