2017-18 RFU Head Injury Assessment Review Process Confirmed
The Rugby Football Union (RFU) today confirmed the head injury assessment (HIA) review process to operate in England for the elite game this season. This is in line with the revised World Rugby HIA review protocol, which was issued to all unions this month. The updated process will support education, training and compliance to underpin player welfare and safety in elite adult rugby with respect to head injuries. This protocol replaces the concussion management monitoring process used last season in England and applies to the following competitions and matches:
- Aviva Premiership
- England senior summer internationals and Old Mutual Wealth Series (men and women)
- England U20 home internationals (men and women)
- A-League
- Greene King IPA Championship
The review consists of two elements: 1. A post game video review process where an independent video reviewer will consider the evidence surrounding a potential head injury incident. Following the conclusion of their review, if required and in consultation with the RFU’s chief medical officer, the reviewer may make recommendations to include:
- Further education and training for club or team medical personnel
- Recommend that the process moves to HIA review
- The HIA review process will involve a group appointed by the RFU head of judiciary that will investigate the incident and make recommendations. This to include:
- Further education and training for the club or team medical personnel,
- The World Rugby HIA working group to consider an alteration in the process, education and/or training
- Make a referral to the RFU head of discipline to consider disciplinary action.
To view the process in full click here. World Rugby Chief Medical Officer Dr Martin Raftery said: “We are constantly reviewing our processes and learning from the evidence to ensure player welfare is at the forefront of the game. “Since its introduction, the HIA process has been proven to be hugely successful in improving the identification and management of head injuries. We acknowledge that there is no perfect system for diagnosing a concussion and that is why we continue to research methods and improve processes in this area. “We recognise that in a small number of cases, we know the HIA process has not been implemented as directed or intended. This new review process has been introduced to address compliance issues through post-game reviews and ongoing education of medical staff. It is designed to work out if and why there has been a failure of process and then to take steps to ensure that it doesn’t happen again through process change recommendations, one-on-one education or referral to the tournament’s disciplinary committee.”
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