Dear all,
During recent weeks in some club games, there has been some confusion around concussion protocols and, in particular, regarding Head Injury Assessments (HIA's).
To be clear the HIA process is for the elite game only (For sake of clarity, in England this means professional rugby i.e. Premiership & Championship). Whether clubs/schools believe they have appropriate medical staff to make such an assessment is irrelevant and when players are removed for assessment/head injury they should not be allowed back on to the field of play.
It is also important to understand the role of the match officials in this, they have an important role in that they are close to the action and if they feel that a head injury which could affect that player or has caused a concussion has taken place they will rightly ask for that player to be removed from the field of play.
I hope that this helps clear up any confusion, please see the below link for advice for players, parents and coaches. If you have any further questions, please drop me a line - stuart.dixon@yorkshirecarnegie.com
https://www.englandrugby.com/my-rugby/players/player-health/concussion-headcase/resources/
Thank you as ever for your support of rugby within Yorkshire.