Concussion Protocol

Any athlete or any student suspected of sustaining a concussion/brain injury will be removed from participation immediately and not allowed to return to play until they have written clearance from a licensed health care provider trained in the evaluation and management of concussion/brain injury. (CIF Bylaw 503.H.).

Caregivers should be given CIF Concussion Protocol and Information by the onsite athletic trainer or a member of the coaching staff. If forms are not provided, they can be downloaded from the California Interscholastic Federation (https://www.cifstate.org/sports-medicine/concussions/index). 

If the student was suspected of having a head injury, the student must be seen and cleared by a physician (regardless of diagnosis) in order to return to sports. 

RTP after concussion should occur only with medical clearance from a physician trained in the evaluation and management of concussions, and a step-wise progression program monitored by an athletic trainer, coach, or other identified school administrator. Please see cifstate.org for a graduated return to play plan. [AB 2127, a California state law effective 1/1/15, states that return to play (i.e., full competition) must be no sooner than 7 days after the concussion diagnosis has been made by a physician.] 

Concussion symptoms should be completely gone before returning to competition. A RTP progression is a gradual, step-wise increase in physical effort, sports-specific activities and then finally unrestricted activities. If symptoms worsen with activity, the progression should be stopped. If there are no symptoms the next day, exercise can be restarted at the previous stage. 

It is important to reiterate that RTP will not start until the school nurse receives the final clearance from a physician trained in the evaluation and management of concussions.