The event will take place over two days, with the first 60-minute workshop taking place on Tuesday, Feb. 23 for coaches, parents and sports administrators and the second seminar running Wednesday, Feb. 24 with an athlete-focussed approach.
“Both are pretty valuable, I think,” said Brennen Ronovsky with the South West District for Culture, Recreation and Sport. “It’s all about trying to better know about athletes when they’re competing and might have symptoms of a concussion. You want to make sure that those don’t get missed because it can cause some pretty significant situations later on in life, for sure.”
The coaches, parents and sports administrators event will be facilitated by Rhonda Shishkin, a certified athletic therapist and sports physiotherapist. It will cover what a concussion is, how to identify one and how to implement concussion management protocols and plans.
The athlete's seminar will also cover concussion basics as well as preventing and managing a concussion, with an emphasis on the importance of reporting concussions and creating a supportive team dynamic. It will be facilitated by sports physiotherapist Michelle Keen.
Both sessions are free of charge and will take place in two timeslots: 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. or 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., with a question and answer period to follow. Participants are asked to pre-register at least 48 hours prior to the event.
The workshops are part of an ongoing series of sports-focussed seminars taking place throughout the year and hosted by the various Culture, Recreation and Sport districts, with the first occurring last week and featuring a look at sports injuries and prevention. Upcoming topics include:
March -- Sports nutrition
April -- Sleep and performance
May -- Drugs in sport education and awareness
June -- Sport nutrition supplements
July -- Mental performance
August -- Mental performance
September -- thinking patterns
October -- Imagery and teams in culture
November -- Routines
December -- Ideal performance states
Information for upcoming seminars, including dates and registration, will be released at the beginning of each month.For more on the South West District for Culture, Recreation and Sport, be sure to check out their website at www.gosouthwest.ca.