Thread by @KevinBrennanMP

Today the @CommonsDCMS Committee published their report on the problem of concussion in sport. Here is a thread of some of the issues the report raised and its recommendations. #concussion #concussioninsport (1/25)

Despite the need for acquired brain injury to be taken seriously by sport, both written and oral evidence to this inquiry support the health benefits to people through mass participation in sporting activity. (2/25)

The reality is that, for most people playing grassroots sport, there is no one to stop them continuing to play, after a head injury, except themselves. That is how far down the knowledge and awareness of concussion and how to respond to it must reach. (3/25)

Doctors may not be able to rely on patients to remember previous concussions or head traumas, especially if these happened at different times playing different sports. They must instead be able to rely on robust information that should be collated on a patient’s records. (4/25)

We recommend that NHS England reviews the way in which it collates data about concussion and concussion-related brain injury and ensures that doctors have a full history available to better inform patient treatments. (5/25)

We are also concerned that the relative infrequency with which clinicians encounter this kind of condition suggests that many of them are likely to be out of date with regard to the best possible practice in treating these patients. (6/25)

We recommend that NHS England, in collaboration with the Faculty of Exercise and Sport Medicine, within the next twelve months, prepares a learning module on the best practice for treating and advising those who present with concussive trauma. (7/25)

The current organisational structures in sport mean that there is no overall responsibility to mandate minimum standards for concussion and head trauma or to assess whether protocols are followed. (8/25)

Elite sports receiving funding as long as their protocols look good on paper with no effort into assessing how those protocols work in practice. As concussion does not occur at high frequency within the elite sport means that little effort is made to drive numbers down. (9/25)

We recommend that the Government mandate UK Sport to take a governance role in assuring that all sports it funds raise awareness on the dangers of concussion effectively - to have good protocols to mitigate the risks of such injury and implement those protocols. (10/25)

We are concerned that UK Sport, uniquely in our evidence base, considers the Consensus Statement by the Concussion in Sport Group as a satisfactory basis for concussion protocols. (11/25)

We recommend a more precautionary approach is taken and a greater proportion of the money spent on elite sport is focussed on protecting the athletes who are at the core of UK success in sporting endeavours. We also recommend that UK Sport fund a chief medical officer. (12/25)

Football’s engagement with the issue of concussion, both in England and internationally, has taken too long and its current prominence is due to the campaigning of organisations like the Jeff Astle Foundation and prominent spokespersons like Chris Sutton. (13/25)

We would have expected the Football Association, as the National Governing Body, to have taken a stronger, sustained interest in the issue after the coroner’s verdict of Jeff Astle’s death. (14/25)

One of the biggest problems is the apparent lack of clarity on who is responsible for driving change. Change has not happened quickly enough and while the science currently available to us describes the problem it does not provide solutions. (15/25)

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 was a landmark piece of legislation to protect the health of workers. We are astounded that sport should be left by the Health and Safety Executive to mark its own homework. (16/25)

Our inquiry into concussion has demonstrated that the long-term effects of acquired brain injury are not simply those events that lead to a diagnosis of concussion. Any impacts that impair clear thinking or involve a heavy impact could contribute to acquired brain injury. (17/25)

We recommend that the Government immediately mandate the Health and Safety Executive to work with National Governing Bodies of all sports to establish, by July 2022, a national framework for the reporting of sporting injuries. (18/25)

The Government should use its power to convene interested parties and establish a single research fund that will co-ordinate and fund research. It should follow the model of the research councils to ensure it is seen to be independent and excellence-driven. (19/25)

We also recommend that the Government convene its own specialist group on concussion, drawing on campaign groups, relevant scientific expertise and sporting institutes to assess, every four years, the emerging science on this issue. (20/25)

We recommend a UK-wide protocol for concussion and the Government should look to the Scottish model and work with the devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to develop, in the next 12 months, a UK protocol for concussion across all sport. (21/25)

Once this protocol is in place we recommend the Government deliver a comprehensive communications campaign to ensure that everyone involved in sport, from the athletes to coaches and doctors, is aware of best practice. (22/25)

We are concerned that there is history of the Government looking into issues of sporting safety and failing to follow through with practical interventions that would make a difference to the safety and health of those participating. (23/25)

We urge the Government must to grasp the nettle this time, move past the concerns about how regulation may change sports, and take real and effective action. (24/25)

It will never be possible to ensure that sport is 100% safe. It should be expected that participants are aware of the risks involved and that there is a precautionary approach to risk management. The Govt. cannot avoid taking a proactive role in ensuring that this occurs. (25/25)

This thread contains only a snapshot of the report, I fully recommend reading it in full here: committees.parliament.uk/publications/6…

During the @CommonsDCMS Committee sessions on concussion in sport we heard from a lot of key witnesses. Here's a thread of the questions I asked @WillStewNeuro earlier this year.

https://twitter.com/KevinBrennanMP/status/1369257370103189504

We also heard from Gordon Taylor (@PFA), Damian Hopley (@theRPA) and Paul Struthers (@PPFplayers).

https://twitter.com/KevinBrennanMP/status/1387361838745198592

The responses from the UK Government's Minister for Sport, Nigel Huddleston MP during @CommonsDCMS Committee questions were very disappointing.

https://twitter.com/KevinBrennanMP/status/1397208281236578307

I'd also recommend watching @WyreDavies' @BBCWales programme - 'Rugby: The Cost of Concussion' on @BBCiPlayer. It features some powerful testimony from @AlixPopham. bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episod…