D’Youville University Hosts Youth Sports Lifesaving Training

BUFFALO, NY (WKBW) — Damar Hamlin’s injury put the spotlight on emergency response at sporting events. We see and hear of serious injuries and incidents like Hamlin’s in the world of professional sports, but it also happens at the youth level.

Between 1 in 50,000 and 1 in 80,000 young athletes die each year from sudden cardiac arrest, according to the Mayo Clinic. According to Stanford Medicine, more than one-fifth of US child traumatic brain injuries are related to sports and recreational activities.

According to the U.S. Department of Education, coaches in New York must be at least certified in emergency first aid, CPR, and AED. D’Youville University hosted a special training session to help youth sports coaches acquire the skills they need to handle life-threatening situations.

The course put the fast thinking and decision making of coaches and trainers to the test.

“There are always people who fall to the floor after being hit or hit by a shot or something,” said Jack Wilson, D’Youville’s head men’s lacrosse coach. Nine times out of 10 it happens, and that second or two is scary and something we all have to be prepared for.”

To save the lives of high school and college athletes in emergencies, D’Youville University partnered with Sports Medicine Concepts to offer “Lifesaving Core 4 Training.”

“Often, coaches and AT training are involved in CPR, AED, and emergency action planning, but they don’t really experience trauma.

Coaches and trainers conducted a series of 10-minute simulations. They forced on-field communications and injury assessments.

A large part of Core4 training is to make coaches and trainers aware of how important clear communication is when it comes to life-threatening conditions such as cervical spine injuries, isolated head injuries, trunk injuries, and cardiac arrest.

“Personally, I think I probably annoyed my athletic trainers too much and had too many conversations with my trainer, Kat. She’s a great person,” Wilson said. “For me, it’s too easy to have a great relationship with them and always be on the same page 100% of her work. It’s really easy and makes a lot of great friends too.”

Experts at Sports Medicine Concepts say most of these simulations represent the 1% of injuries these coaches and trainers never see, but Hamlin’s most recent injury is a game-changer. It reminds me of what I never say when it comes to heart trauma on any level.

“Unfortunately, injuries like cardiac arrest are common in Little League, men’s and women’s lacrosse and hockey. It happens fairly consistently in sports, and no one is trained to handle it.

But everyone who attended Core4 training knows how after Monday night’s training.

“I’d rather get all the training I need than tell someone’s parents bad news,” Wilson said.