Preseason Heat-Acclimatization Guidelines for Secondary School Athletics

Casa, Douglas J.; Csillan, David; Participants, Inter-Association Task Force; Armstrong, Lawrence E.; Baker, Lindsay B.; Bergeron, Michael F.; Buchanan, Virginia M.; Carroll, Michael J.; Cleary, Michelle A.; Eichner, E. Randy; Ferrara, Michael S.; Fitzpatrick, Tony; Hoffman, Jay R.; Kenefick, Robert W.; Klossner, David; Knight, J. Chad; Lennon, Stephanie A.; Lopez, Rebecca M.; Matava, Matthew J.; O’Connor, Francis G.; Peterson, Bart C.; Rice, Sarah; Robinson, Brian K.; Shriner, Robert J.; West, Michael S.; Yeargin, Susan W.

doi:10.4085/1062-6050-44.3.332

Cited by 125 publications

(97 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…11,14 For the purposes of this study, successful implementation was operationally defined as passage by the high school athletic association, implementation statewide, and adherence to the recommended heat-acclimatization guidelines. 4 Specifically, Arkansas was chosen because of professional contacts and a geographic location in the southern midwest region. Georgia was chosen because of its professional contacts and southeast geographic location.…”

Section: Participant Samplingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Phone interviews followed a semistructured format (Table 2), drawing from current literature regarding organizational change 9,10 as well as athletic training research regarding sudden death in sport and emergency procedures. [3][4][5] Three content-area experts in qualitative methodology, organizational change and culture, and sudden death in sport reviewed both interview guides (Table 2) for clarity and accuracy. Only minor changes for flow and verbiage were needed.…”

Section: Data-collection Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The NATA consensus statement on preseason heat acclimatization for the secondary school athlete 4 was the most commonly used document, which was not a surprise, as we chose the states to study because they met the guidelines established by the NATA. The members of professional organizations, such as the NATA, strove to make their policies match those of their governing body, not only because it was the established best practice within the organization but also to maintain legitimacy, supporting both coercive and normative isomorphism.…”

Section: Policy Selectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Additionally, because of some of the unique challenges of working in the secondary school setting, such as budget, medical coverage, and competitiveness, we suggest establishing policies specific to the secondary school, especially considering the reliance upon them by our participants as a model for acceptable guidelines. Because our participants seemed to rely heavily on the nationally established guidelines created specifically for the secondary school setting, 4 we suggest that the NATA develop more secondary school-specific guidelines, such as the NATA position statement on preventing sudden death in the secondary school setting. 47 Furthermore, we recommend that states planning to update or create policies refer to existing guidelines, as they are not only a great resource but also add legitimacy to the state organization.…”

Section: Practical Applicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We purposely chose our 3 states for their adoption of heatacclimatization guidelines that meet those recommended by the NATA. 4 Because of this targeted sample, future investigators should also focus attention on the development and implementation of policies established to reduce other injuries or illnesses in sport. Also, state athletic organizations that have not been able to pass health and safety policy changes or whose policy changes do not follow or meet existing national standards should be studied to gain different perspectives on the barriers encountered and resources used.…”

Section: Limitations and Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Implementing Health and Safety Policy Changes at the High School Level From a Leadership Perspective

Pagnotta

Mazerolle

Pitney

et al. 2016

Journal of Athletic Training

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Context: Although consensus statements and recommendations from professional organizations aim to reduce the incidence of injury or sudden death in sport, nothing is mandated at the high school level. This allows states the freedom to create and implement individual policies. An example of a recommended policy is heat acclimatization. Despite its efficacy in reducing sudden death related to heat stroke, very few states follow the recommended guidelines.Objective: To retroactively examine why and how 3 states were able to facilitate the successful creation and adoption of heat-acclimatization guidelines.Design: Qualitative study. Setting: High school athletic associations in Arkansas, Georgia, and New Jersey.Patients or Other Participants: Eight men and 3 women (n ¼ 11; 6 athletic trainers; 2 members of high school athletic associations; 2 parents; 1 physician) participated. Participant recruitment ceased when data saturation was reached.Data Collection and Analysis: All phone interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim. A grounded-theory approach guided analysis and multiple analysts and peer review were used to establish credibility.Results: Each state had a different catalyst to change (student-athlete death, empirical data, proactivity). Recommendations from national governing bodies guided the policy creation. Once the decision to implement change was made, the states displayed 2 similarities: shared leadership and open communication between medical professionals and members of the high school athletic association helped overcome barriers.Conclusions: The initiating factor that spurred the change varied, yet shared leadership and communication fundamentally allowed for successful adoption of the policy. Our participants were influenced by the recommendations from national governing bodies, which align with the institutional change theory. As more states begin to examine and improve their health and safety policies, this information could serve as a valuable resource for athletic trainers in other states and for future health and safety initiatives.

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Section: Participant Samplingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Data-collection Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Policy Selectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Practical Applicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Limitations and Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

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