Like millions of children around the world, your kid might be participating in a sport this year.
As such, you should want to know as much as possible about how to handle an injured student, and what you can do to prevent future injuries. Even small injuries, if not treated and rehabilitated correctly, can worsen over time. And studies have shown that mismanaged injuries can lead to surgeries in adulthood, which can even result in arthritis later in life.
To give your children the best possible future and the best possible academic and/or athletic career, it’s important that you’re aware of some of the more common types of injuries, the legal implications of certain types of accidents, and the emotional and physical recovery times associated with accidents. With this in mind, here are different types of accidents and how to handle them:
The Athletic Sports Accident
If your child is injured in the field in school, it’s likely due to an accident and no legal actions are required. Sports are inherently competitive and injuries are likely to happen. According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, teenage athletes are injured at the same rate as professional athletes. There are a few types of injuries your child might sustain in high school:
An acute injury. Acute injuries are the result of sudden trauma, like a collision between two football players. A type of acute injury might be a sprain or fracture.
Overuse injuries. Sometimes, injuries occur over an extended period of time, and that’s where overuse injuries come in. Overuse injuries occur when the tendons, ligaments, and bones don’t have enough time to heal to between playing times. Your child needs to have a balance between sports and inactivity to prevent overuse injuries.
Severe injuries. There are the worst kinds of injuries and involve catastrophic events that could cause permanent and life-changing damaging, like an injury to the spine, neck, or head.
The “Fun” Sports Auto Accident
Teens enjoy the thrill of speed behind the wheel. And while you may feel you’ve got your bases covered with auto safety, there are still other types of auto accidents you need to be aware of. For instance, according to Ravid & Associates, an accident on an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) is more common than many people think, and these vehicles have a complicated set of rules and regulations depending on the particular state.
“Sometimes our clients have been in other accidents in other vehicles and they wonder why or how their accident case of the past is different than their ATV accident case,” they said. “They often wonder why, if they have seen how things were handled in the previous accident case, they cannot just try to handle the ATV case in a similar fashion.”
Whenever your children are engaging in activities that require any type of wheel motion to propel, it’s important for you to understand the legal regulations of that particular vehicle. The truth is, ATVs are often unstable and hard to control, especially for children. And although the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) discourages people under 16 from riding an ATV, it happens all the time, as many people don’t consider it a complicated vehicle with hefty consequences.
Take Them to Physical Therapy
In cases where serious injuries have occurred, therapy is necessary. Sports therapy—or physical therapy—is an area of healthcare that focuses on improving the mobility and function of an athlete. This is done through a variety of physical treatments, like electrotherapy and the use of mechanical movements and force.
Sometimes, this type of therapy is required by a doctor and a natural part of the recovery process. Other times, you should consider elective sports therapy. This is simply when you take your child to therapy although an accident hasn’t occurred. For example, this would be ideal if your child is experiencing chronic pain and you suspect they may be susceptible to an overuse injury.
Purchase Reliable Protective Gear
With the right gear and equipment, you can help your child prevent a serious injury. This includes helmets, pads, the right shoes, etc. You should ask your child what they would need to both better their performance, as well as keep them safer on the field. You should also do your own research online to find suggestions they may not have been aware of.
Stick to a Routine
When your child is injured in a leisure activity—whether it’s on the field or in an ATV—maintaining a routine on the path to recovery is important. For instance, if the injury requires sports therapy for three months, you wouldn’t want to quit therapy early just because your child is feeling better; it’s important that you see all your recovery processes through.
An injured student will likely receive care from various providers during the rehabilitation process, especially if the student is an athlete and hurt during the sport. At the same time, they need to also be psychologically ready to return to school. Create a schedule that makes it easy for everyone to follow. Consider putting it on a bulletin board or on the fridge.
