Dr. Paul Echlin and Dr. Charles Tator, both experts in concussions, are seen with MRI brain scans at Toronto Western Hospital on February 6, 2011.JENNIFER ROBERTS
It is a sometimes fuzzy world, this business of getting people to think about brain injuries. But Dr. Paul Echlin would like all of you - players, parents, coaches, fans and administrators - to know one thing about people such as himself and Dr. Charles Tator:
They aren't trying to kill your favourite sport.
Really.
"We're not trying to stop sport or collisions in sports like football and hockey," Echlin said this week. "It's not about saying we can reduce the number of concussions to zero. But it is about saying we can significantly decrease the numbers."
More than anything it's about compiling cold, hard facts and numbers about concussions and the culture that contributes to their occurrence and misdiagnosis, and about cutting through the stubborn resistance and misunderstandings at a time when the best hockey player in the world sits at home in his parents' living room unsure of when he'll play another National Hockey League game.
Echlin, a sports medicine physician in London, Ont., was the lead researcher in a study of two unnamed junior hockey teams. The study was published in the November issue of Neurosurg Focus, and revealed that the rate of concussions was seven times more than previously reported and that players, coaches, referees and administrators were not taking the injuries as seriously as they should.
Tator is a neurosurgeon at Toronto Western Hospital and founder of ThinkFirst Canada. The Globe and Mail chose him last year as one of seven Canadians changing the world.
As far back as 1992, Tator was at the forefront of research and advocacy into spinal cord injuries through his founding and stewardship of ThinkFirst Canada, an organization devoted to educating the public about head and spinal cord injuries. Tator is also part of a group gathering the brains of deceased athletes to study the long-term effects of concussions.
"This is an evolving picture, but I'm optimistic we've turned the corner," said Tator, who considers the late Dr. Tom Pashby to be his mentor. Pashby's research spearheaded the drive for Canadian Standards Association approved facial protection for hockey and the introduction of facial protection in amateur play.
"Most people are now aware of what a concussion is," Tator said. "It's really quite amazing, the turnaround I have seen in the past 12 months that parents, referees, coaches and trainers are more aware of concussions. The majority of people now actually know what a concussion is, whereas before very few really labelled concussion correctly. You know, they were using terms like 'having your bell rung.'"
Just this week, Tator and several of his peers finalized a 45-minute presentation on concussions that they are pushing to be included in preseason meetings for all players 18 and under on football and hockey teams.
"In 45 minutes," Tator said, "we can get across enough information to players, parents, coaches, referees and trainers that will equip everybody to deal effectively with concussions. I'm talking about what the diagnosis consists of, the signs and symptoms of a concussion, and what the management of a concussed athlete consists of, including return-to-play guidelines."
Echlin and Tator are due their status atop The Globe and Mail's Sports Power 50 List. Out of their advocacy is born research; out of that research is born advocacy. While that may not lead to a smarter NHL approach to dealing with head shots and concussions - you can't have a battle if one side isn't interested in becoming engaged - at the very least it contributes to the empowerment of people who might have a role in saving kids' lives.