The City of Terrace is sponsoring a sports clinic that focuses on the latest information related to preventing, diagnosing and treating concussions and other injuries.
The evening course will be hosted by the non-profit organization SportsMed BC and is divided into two sections: Concussion and SportsSmart.
Organizer Alexandra Sojo said SportsMed has the 2015 Canada Winter Games being held in Prince George in mind in administering the program.
“We are targeting volunteers in the Canada Winter Games,” said Sojo. “We want to make sure they all have a knowledge of sports safety and best practice.”
But the course is also for anyone over the age of 16 – parents, coaches, officials, athletes – anyone who works in the sports sector.
“We have Kevin Phillips who is a certified athletic therapist and has great experience in many different sports and is going to be the one on the front line disseminating the information,” Sojo said.
“There is a grey area of what a concussion is,” Sojo continued.
“The first course of the evening shows what the medical establishment does know, and presents the latest research and best practices in the sport industry and medical sector.”
“Concussions are a possibility in high risk sport like hockey and rugby,” she said.
The second section is called SportSmart and focuses on how to properly warm up and cool down, and proper training methods: “The things that can happen and how to prevent them.”
The two courses will be given in a lecture- style presentation with a PowerPoint presentation and a question and answer period led by Kevin Phillips, who according to Sojo, has a ton of experience in a multitude of injury situations.
The City of Terrace is paying the entry fee for residents and also offering a room at the Sportsplex for free.
“This is a city sponsorship for these workshops because we recognize the importance of concussion and injury prevention for our facility users – whether it is in the arena or on the field,” said city spokesperson Alisa Thompson.
The Concussion Management Workshop is happening from 6-7:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 15. Right after that, there will be a SportSmart Workshop from 8-9:30 p.m.
SportMed BC is also hosting an all-day, pay-to-participate taping workshop on the Sunday before.
“It’s an intro on how to tape for athletic purposes. When to tape, when not to tape for injuries, ankles and knees, a basic understanding of the dos and don’ts of taping, what kinds of tape to use, and how to use them,” said Sojo, adding that participants are being asked to wear athletic clothing for the hands-on lessons.
Those interested in either workshop are asked to phone the city at 250-615-3000.