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Subscribe to RSSProgress on limiting the health effects of concussions in the NFL and the Army will take a change in the “warrior culture” that keeps players and soldiers silent and their comrades and leaders inattentive to the problem.
That’s the message NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond T. Odierno delivered in a panel discussion held at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. on Thursday afternoon and streamed online by the Army.
Goodell appeared on the panel the same day that the NFL filed a motion to dismiss 140 concussion lawsuits, saying the claims are pre-empted by federal labor law.
Related: Military study finds training concussions for some troops
Before an audience of cadets, the two leaders, as well as two soldiers, two former players and two brain injury specialists, probed the topics of concussions and mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) in sports and the military and what can be done to help identify, treat and prevent them.
Brain injuries have been linked with the suicides of former NFL players, most recently Junior Seau, and suicides in the military.
All agreed that while coaches, platoon leaders and other leaders should bear responsibility for combating the problem, a third party needs to involved to help decide whether to keep soldiers and athletes active.
“It’s not just the medical people or you as leaders’ responsibility,” Odierno said. “It’s you as a fellow soldier or fellow player. If you see that they’ve been injured and you can tell that they’re not necessarily with it entirely. We’re not asking you to make a diagnosis. Make sure you tell somebody. Get them of the field. Get them off the battlefield. And make sure they get the proper medical attention. It’s all of our responsibilities.”
Related: Concussion crisis growing in girls' soccer
The panelists pointed out the similarities among soldiers and NFL athletes and cultures in which fierce competitiveness can allow injuries such as concussions to be ignored for sake of winning or completing a mission. Pressure from peers can also lead to players or soldiers not wanting to report health issues for fear of being perceived as weak.
“There’s been a greater awareness that these injuries are serious because they deal with your brain and they need the proper time to be able to recover from that,” Goodell said. “Hopefully the awareness allows soldiers and players in any sport to understand that when you have these injuries you treat them seriously and make sure you get medical attention before you engage.”
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Medical experts on the panel explained how new protocols and tests in the NFL and the military help diagnose concussions. For example, the Army takes an image of soldiers' brains before deployment to create base line that can be compared with an image after combat. Other rules and regulations keep players and soldiers from returning to action before they are cleared by a medical professional.
The effects of repeated concussions and dangers to children have spurred 38 states to pass concussion laws. Most require schools and leagues to inform athletes and parents about concussions, to remove kids who appear to have suffered concussions from play and to require players to be cleared by a health care professional before returning. The NFL has supported that effort.
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Former NFL players Troy Vincent and Bart Oates appeared on the panel, as did Staff Sgt. Shawn Hibbard and Maj. Christopher Molino. The medical experts were Maj. Sarah Goldman, Army's traumatic brain injury program director, and Dr. Richard Ellenbogen, of the University of Washington, who co-chairs the NFL's head, neck and spine committee.
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My students can help you out with a design that will prevent concussions! Probably end up like the pads we had to buy for the soldiers in 2006 to help stop some of the problems!
"...pointed out the similarities among soldiers and NFL athletes and cultures..." ... particularly during the playing of the National Anthem when soldiers scratch their balls, spit, and make funnies with each other.
Warrior culture? I know all about that and how it works.
When I first joined the 82nd Airborne I had a lot of back problems that I had to suck up so I wouldn't be accused of being soft or a quitter. It is the same "are you hurt or are you injured, I don't see blood" mentality of football.
Warriors can be wounded too!
While I applaud both groups for their recognition that concussions have not been treated like other injuries I do have one problem. The being in the military or being on a combat mission is not a game. In a football game you substitute another player for the injured one. That does not happen in the middle of a combat mission. A soldier can not stop in the middle of a mission and say, "I think I might have a concussion coach. I'm going to have to sit on the bench in the middle of this mission."
GK Give us a break "Really"
GK-
Yeah, you're right. Except for the fact that a concussion is a dangerous injury and has dangerous side effects. You really want a soldier with memory loss leading the charge or a soldier with nausea or a soldier that sees flashing lights? It's not just a bump on the head, it is an injury to your brain. This is dangerous.
Your right GK. War isn't football. But the underlying tough it out and don't talk about it ideas are simmilar. Both soldiers and players will be able to give a lot more to their team and their countries if they admit they are hurt, get treated and then get back in the fight/game when they are 100% again.
One of the toughest things any man can do is admit he needs some help.
But, it looks good on paper.
Yes our country will be much better with a fat ass wussy culture, no warriors needed or wanted in the army.
No, but our country will be much better with people who have traumatic brain injuries seeking medical care and not risking further harm to their brains. Or, if they are a soldier, not risking having symptoms of a concussion whilst in combat.
The mentality you show in your statement illustrates the problem perfectly.
Why should asking for help be considered "wussy?"
Football is a game, the Army is not.
I find myself watching Rugby lately and its telling how physical they can play without those type of concussive injuries. When you put a Helmet on a guy 6"5" 300 pounds, that is a de-facto weapon. But I love football, so I'm torn, I have a 5 year old and he wants to play. I would rather he play baseball.
Rugby has concussions too. Maybe not at the same rate, but still high rates of concussions.
Concussions aren't the real problem (in football). It is the cumulative effect of disrupting the organization of a person's brain (due to high G forces). In football, we need to dump the helmets and the pads. Our natural sensors (i.e. pain) will keep the rest in check.
HOCKEY
Nice, the time for any kind of American Football is over. It's too barbaric. 140+ law suits for concussions. Jesh. Wanna guess how many more players have concussions and brain damage and are not suing? Football, boxing, and hockey, are just too barbaric. There is a certain irony in American Football players and the Army wanting to change the warrior culture. How bout stopping the violence and wars for corporate gain for a starter.
Separate problems, in my opinion. NFL is a business that exists to sell advertising (I love football, but that's what it is). If it's too rough to sell advertising, go 'head and change the rules-no big deal. That doesn't mean there's a problem with "warrior culture".
The US Army is a combat force. Recent spike in suicides is, again in my opinion, the result of requiring warriors to perform jobs for which they are ill suited-nation building, winning hearts and minds, policing hostile villages, and other COINT missions-resulting in long term deployments without clear objectives and, I suspect, frequently conflicting directives. The result is a group of strong minded fighters being placed in a unwinnable situation without clear direction for an interminable period. Only lawyers and politicians can tolerate an endless muddle where nothing is accomplished. This also fails to demonstrate any problem with "warrior culture". It clearly demonstrates a problem with the culture charged with deploying warriors.
Love it, too true.
If a soldier were to be shot in the leg he might have to finish that mission but it would be irresponsible for the soldier to not alert a corpsman to the injury or to try and hide it from his squad and continue going on future missions without recovering first. Some concussions are more severe than others but can limit cognitive function very easily and to steal a line from concealed carry "when seconds count..." What's the difference between a soldier that is dizzy from blood lose and a soldier dizzy from a concussion?
I don't think the military is saying no soldiers should ever fight with a broken leg or a gushing head wound, they would just really prefer it to get that @!$%# healed up before going back to duty because it will add unnecessary risk.
The latest report on Junior Seau's death says that brain trauma was not evident, although further study is pending.
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000055366/article/presence-of-cte-in-junior-seaus-brain-unclear-after-autopsy