Immediate Care in Rugby

Introduction

Participation in contact/collision sports at all levels is on the increase. Participants in these contact sports have become generally stronger and more athletic, certainly at the elite end of the spectrum, resulting in high levels of energy dissipation in the contact phase.

Even though relatively rare, every year there are incidents in contact, and occasionally in non-contact, sports of significant trauma or medical emergencies.

At high exposure, elite sporting events there are often numerous medical personnel in attendance including doctors and paramedics or emergency medical technicians to deliver immediate care if required, but often at non-elite events there are limited clinical personnel with adequate training and equipment to deal with the immediate care of players. The time to the arrival of ambulance crews at such events can be considerable especially in remote, limited access areas, when a time-critical, life-threatening injury or medical condition may occur.

There is a well-defined need for doctors, physiotherapists and other professionals looking after players and teams to be personally competent in the skills and with the equipment required to provide the delivery of immediate care at the pitch side, racetrack, poolside etc. Not only do these professionals need to be prepared on match/event days but also at training venues and grounds where a significant numbers of injuries or medical problems also occur.

The aim of this course is to introduce the skills and equipment required to facilitate the delivery of immediate care to our sport’s men and women, who may suffer a time-critical life or limb threatening injury or medical condition. Candidates will experience multi-modality training in a positive learning environment, delivered by an experienced faculty from the fields of pre-hospital care, emergency medicine and sports and exercise medicine.

Candidates will be assessed to ensure adequate acquisition of knowledge and skills along with scenario application, analysis and evaluation allowing them to demonstrate they are able to deliver immediate care after completion of the course.

The online textbook and questions are an aid to candidates undertaking the course, facilitating adequate preparation. Candidates will progress through each of the chapters starting with the foundations of immediate care delivery. They will focus on the specifics of the SABCDE approach developing an understanding of the assessment processes and management of potential time critical life or limb threatening injuries and medical conditions. Attention will be placed on managing all aspects of trauma, on medical emergencies including temperature-related illness and will introduce them to medical equipment, emergency care medicines and medical gases,  while also focusing on the importance of emergency planning in the provision of Immediate Care in Rugby.

At the end of each chapter the candidate will be required to correctly answer questions before progressing to the next chapter. This will highlight areas that require further attention before moving on to the next subject. On completion of the online chapters candidates will have ongoing access to the rest of the course materials including the audio slide sets, skills, scenario station videos and proformas and the course programme. This will allow candidates to be fully prepare for the face to face component of the course.

It is the intention that through this course there will be a significant improvement in the provision of immediate trauma and medical care to our players, facilitating not only a reduction in morbidity and mortality, but also provide confidence trough competency assessment to the providers of this care.

You can download the ICIR Q&A and Slide Set Webinars from the link below. You are required to review these in advance of attending your practical ICIR (L2) course. You can also download after completion of the module:

Click to Download ICIR Q&A and Slide Set Webinars