Arizona has introduced a first-of-its-kind concussion education program that requires all student-athletes to pass a formal concussion test before being cleared for sports.
The Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA), along with the Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center and the Arizona Cardinals, debuted their Brainbook concussion e-learning program on Tuesday, saying it will immediately affect more than 100,000 student-athletes in the state.
Brainbook is an approximately 50-minute concussion education program available online that all male and female student-athletes will have to take this year to be eligible to play sports. The program uses videos and a Q&A format to walk student-athletes through symptoms and signs of a concussion, encourage them to report all suspected concussions (even for teammates), and explain to them what to do if they have a concussion. (Take a test version of the program for a spin here.)
Best of all, it’s laid out in a Facebook-esque format (complete with “Likes” and “Dislikes”), so Millennials should feel right at home. One downside to the program, however: There’s nothing requiring users to