HEAD INJURIES : one stop shopping

I have made comments on head injuries in sports in previous blogposts here and here.  I heard recently on the news how even a series of minor head injuries can cause early dementia to those in their 20's.

There is a mishmash of data on the web already, but there was never one place to go for all the information.

Now, a Canadian Sports Medicine doc, Paul Echlin,  has created a website - The Sport Concussion Library - that pulls together all the information into a one-stop shopping place for Researchers, MDs, First Responders, Parents, Coaches, Schools and Athletes, where one can get information about sport induced concussions.

Chart obtained from this website: Science 2.0
Notice that it does not include Ice Hockey!

It is aimed at educating the public.....but also professionals.  He was tired of seeing so many young persons come into his office - poorly diagnosed and treated and with little understanding of the seriousness and the effect it has on the youth's future.

It is a non-profit, no fee resource.  It has all the up-to-date research that has been done on concussions.

The site gives access to 1500 studies and articles published in Medical Journals and 60 thesis' and book chapters dealing with concussion.  It is linked to many prominent reliable Medical websites.

There are interactive teaching modules. 

There is a SCAT2  test - a concussion assessment tool - that can be given by therapists and MDs and PARENTS to screen an athlete for concussion post injuries.   Use via the MD's website is FREE OF CHARGE.

As Dr. Echlin states: (as reported on Global News)

"This is a public service ... It's not about commercialized sport. It's about the public health of our children.

"Parents are key to this. They can be proactive and empowered. Because I think in the past the parents haven't been empowered and they felt at the mercy of sports people, and not even physicians.

"So it's about them determining what's best for their children."

 

Hopefully, there are people out there who read this, and can use it to further educate themselves and prevent further brain injury and protect our younger generation who have others making decisions for them based on the attitude of "buck up and get back out there on the ice".

Nurse Phobias & The Grey Cup

My niece is just learning the dangers of what happens when you start to learn about diseases.  She is training to be an esthetician.  They learn some of the same things that we do in nursing.....anatomy and physiology, diseases.......

Here is what she posted on her Facebook wall:

The arrow points to my reply.

I had to laugh because I happen to understand the phobias that develop with that extra knowledge about diseases and germs.

I have even blogged about it.  I have also blogged about my opinion about someone else's careless disregard for contagious diseases when they spread it to others around them.

Which leads me to the reason for this post.

Today is the Grey Cup and last week my husband invited a couple over that he interacts with through his work.

Unfortunately, what he didn't know is that last weekend on their way home from vacation,  she managed to develop an URI.  

When she phoned my husband the day before, I could hear her voice loud and clear over the phone from across the room.

She sounded terrible.  I assumed she was phoning to decline the invite today.

So yesterday afternoon,  when I was making out the grocery shopping list,  my husband mentioned that there were going to be seven of us........

My phobia starts to kick in.  "Your sick friend is coming????"

"Of course!" he states.

But......she sounded so sick!!! She can't be coming ....!!!

"Yes..".  a little more cautious, seeing my horrified face and sensing my phobia kicking into high gear. "They are..."

"Who goes visiting out in public when they are sick????!!!!"  I am starting to get panicky.  My husband is too....he sees what is coming....

 I tell him he has to find a way to "uninvite"  her.  After all, she's HIS sick friend....

So, trying to correct the situation, he emails a polite note to her:


"Sorry you aren't feeling well.  I can understand if you can't come tomorrow.  I can imagine you aren't feeling up to it....you sounded so sick yesterday on the phone.  You will need your rest to get better"

To which she emails back, "Oh no! It sounds worse than it is!!! We will be there!!!"

*SIGH*

So much for beating around the bush and hoping someone gets the hint.

Just to let you know - I won't be downstairs watching the game in the enclosed space of the Mancave.  Nope.   My girlfriend Jan is coming over - and her husband - and she and I will be upstairs watching on the smaller TV in our living room........

The month I was off  work sick last winter with an URI is still fresh in my mind and I am NOT going to expose myself to any bugs if I can help it.  I was traumatized. 

And - thing is - my girlfriend who is also an RN is almost as germophobic as I am.   I am wondering if I should warn her in advance.   It isn't as though she would want to be downstairs watching on the 110 inch theater screen anyway.  In fact, I suspect she will bring her iPad so she can play Angry Birds.

As for the food.....I won't be touching anything downstairs.   I have bought chips in small portion bags so there aren't bowls of shared food.  I will keep a stash of food upstairs so I don't have to go downstairs to get anything.

Why do people insist on going out when they are coughing and hacking and sound like crap?

Sometimes I curse nursing, and wish I were oblivious to those invisible germs out there and then I could be one of those stupid people who goes out and spreads those bugs to everyone in the community with no thought whatsoever.....

*SIGH*

Well, at least I could still laugh about someone else's developing phobia......

I'll let you know if I get sick.

I've already told my husband that if he gets sick.....I won't be his nurse.....

Earthquake in Seattle? Nope, just the "12th MAN"

Something on the news reminded me of that Biblical story: The walls of Jericho.  It's difficult to believe that people can march around the walls of a city (they numbered 603,550 per Biblical reference) and actually make the structure fall......

HOWEVER:

This is proof positive that it can happen.

It was found that the "12th Man" (only 60K strong) created a 20 second seismic reading......just as Marshawn Lynch ran his amazing 67 yards down the field.  An old monitoring system near where the old Kingdome used to stand picked it up.

(Image courtesy: Pacific Northwest Seismic Network)

By the way, Seattle was the only place the "earthquake" was recorded.

The Fans in Seattle are now believers - that miracles can happen......

Intermission

Too busy watching Seattle WIN!!!!!!! (yay Lynch!!! - 67 yard run breaking through 6 failed tackles!) and now the Colts (trying to find my nephew in the crowd) to bother with a blog today...........

Now.....gotta grab the cough syrup and the lozenges and I am good to go...........!

Even I don't mind watching football on a 10 foot screen..... :)

[Hey honey! Can you make me some popcorn!!!??]

Vuvuzelas.....again.

My husband is a Golf freak.

Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining! I find great joy knowing that he enjoys something so much! There are worse things he could do to fill his time.

Occasionally I have been known to go out onto the course for a round or two but since my MVA that has not only stopped me from doing hospital nursing - it has stopped most strenuous activities that I used to love to do including weight lifting and golf. 

It is discouraging when you have once been able to hit a golf ball near 200 yards, and now, because of the shoulder injury, it is all you can do to get it a hundred feet. Not fun.  Also, I can only do 9 instead of 18.  I can still enjoy the 19th hole though.

Like I said, I would never deny my husband the happiness he gets from golfing. Or from watching golf.

So I hear this familiar buzzing sound emitting from the tv....almost as bad as when the Soccer was in it's prime a month ago.....Vuvuzelas!

Coming around the corner, I expect to see a soccer match, but NO...it is a Golf Game!

Apparently the Senior's tournament is being held near Seattle, and the sound is -

  airplanes!   The course is situated near a small airport and the small planes are buzzing about, trying to view the game in progress.

I would almost like to be listening to vuvuzelas because at least they thought to mute the sound at the station level.

VUVUZZZZZZZZZZZZZZELA!

A little bit of history here. The vuvuzela isn't a new concept in the world of sports. My brother owned one in the 1980's, which he took to every game 'round about the time that Pamela Anderson was discovered in the very same bleachers at a B.C. Lions Football game.

He had always been an avid Football (not soccer) fan, having played on the high school team and then a farm team - and then briefly marrying a B.C. Lion's Cheerleader....which isn't a big deal in a country who's university/college games are attended by a very sparse crowd - mostly relatives.

You have to understand that Football isn't as big as it is in the U.S.A. Our star players aren't treated quite like the stars of the American teams. (btw: the present minimum salary of a professional football player is $41K - only a very few make the $4.2 Million cap -  just to give you an idea as to how much most of these guys are making - less than me!) My brother once ran into 5 members from the Professional league on the local beach.

Of course, Doug being Doug, upon recognizing them, introduced himself and asked where they were staying. It was the middle of summer and the beach town we lived in was like Waikiki Beach at the height of the season. Hotel rooms were at a premium.

"Oh, we don't have any rooms....they were all booked up - I guess we will be staying on the beach." they lamented.......but not with a privileged whine.... no one even thought to throw their weight around to make a vacancy and definitely, no one was offering.

" WHAT?! Don't do that! Come on home with me" my brother volunteers. "My parents will let you stay at their place! They won't mind..."

So that is how it ended up that I had 5 hunky guys sleeping on the floor of our basement, just outside my bedroom door. Nice guys. ;)

Anyway. My brother owned this BRIGHT ORANGE Vuvuzela-type horn which he would take to every B.C. Lions Football game. He had his Season's pass, so every game would find him in the same seat with the same people around him. You would think he would know better.

If you have been watching the FIFA games, you can see how annoying those noisemakers can be.
This following video illustrates what happened next:



Except - not the punching out part....the guy sitting in front of him grabbed his vuvuzela and snapped it in half over his knee. Surprised my brother. Although - it shouldn't have. If that was me sitting in front of him, I would have done the same thing.

Sometimes I wish there were a whole raft of people like that at the 2010 FIFA games...... it's really getting annoying.

ORANGE ALERT!

So my team is in the semi-finals. YAY Netherlands!

But oh my! What drama...all those *fake* injuries just to get a penalty kick. It is almost akin to watching Wrestlemania!

Meanwhile, here is a cute ad, soccer (and L&D!!) related:
The link in case you can't see

Celebration - "The Beautiful Game"

The FIFA theme song by K'naan, a Somalian-born Canadian - to Celebrate "the Beautiful Game"....the most popular game in the World....



This is a close second......the "football dance" (yes, that's what the world calls "soccer")



Then, a bit of South African rally cry....



Now, if the above doesn't get you in the mood for what's coming up in the next four weeks, I don't know what will! :)

And one more for the road....



GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!