Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. The matter I raise is a follow-up to a presentation to the Joint Committee on Health last week. The GAA made a submission calling for the establishment of a task force on concussion injury comprising representatives of sports organisations, sports medicine bodies and primary and post-primary schools. The main focus of the task force should be to review successful pubic health campaigns in countries such as Canada and the United States in relation to concussion injury; plan and implement a national awareness campaign; run a targeted awareness in primary and post-primary schools for pupils, parents and teachers; and develop educational resources such as online training courses, educational videos and information leaflets.

The deficiencies in care were highlighted in a submission by Professor John M. Ryan to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children as follows:

Despite the increased publicity around the problem that concussion in sport presents and despite the increasing awareness around concussion, there
remain deficiencies in Ireland in knowledge translation around the management of concussion particularly at local level. There is evidence that some athletes hide their symptoms deliberately or through ignorance to try and prevent being withdrawn from sporting activity. At a primary care level there are frequently reported deficiencies in knowledge around the identification and management of sports-related concussion. Similarly, at a secondary care level most sports-related concussions in Ireland are managed initially by senior house officers in emergency medicine. These doctors' experience in head injury management revolves around the management of traumatic brain injuries at the higher level, including skull fractures and traumatic brain haemorrhages. The approach to the concussed athlete frequently follows the approach of dealing with the worst case scenario. Such an approach is built upon undergraduate medical education where exposure to sports and exercise medicine is limited.

It is in this context that I draw attention to the proposal made to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children that a task force be established which would examine this area and put in place a proper structure so that every organisation is singing from the same hymn sheet in terms of dealing with and managing concussion.