For a lengthy period of time, sport-related concussion (SRC) in Australia and America, predominantly in high contact sports, has been circulating medical and scientific communities. SRC is not a new occurrence, but rather it has been a prominent issue in society for decades.
Concussion is defined as a mild traumatic injury, concerning or pertaining to a traumatically induced physiological disturbance of the brain and brain function, as manifested by at least one of the following
- “any period of loss of consciousness;
- any loss of memory for events immediately before or after [an] accident;
- any alteration in mental state at the time of the accident; and
- focal neurological deficit(s) that may or may not be transient” (Curtis, et al., 2017).
In the US, a law has been enacted titled the Lystedt Law, following the distressing brain injury suffered by Zackery Lystedt when he was sent back on the field to play after expressing that he had felt confusion, headache and difficulty remembering the plays. The concussion law has three necessary components:
- “education of athletes and parents or guardians about concussion.
- removal of an athlete from practise or play at the time of suspected concussion or head injury.
- return to practice or play only with the written permission of a licensed health care provider trained in the evaluation and management of concussion”(Train, 2014).
A recent study conducted in America has revealed that 110 of the 111 NFL players who donated their brains for scientific research suffered from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), which places them in the same high-risk category as war veterans (Hinds, 2017). This alarming statistic validates that relevant changes need to be made in the Australian legal system, as well as further education and increased human awareness of this issue.
The role of Negligence in SRC 