Teachers Need First Aid Training 25 July, 2012 The Fiji Rugby Union is once again emphasizing to teachers and school rugby trainers to take extra precautions during training to avoid catastrophic injuries, after another student was rushed to hospital yesterday with a suspected neck injury.

FRU’s Medical Coordinator William Koong who was on hand to stabilize the student yesterday has stressed the need for teachers to start taking FRU’s warnings seriously.
“There has been a lot of talk about catastrophic injuries in secondary schools and it is still happening, there is now a need for school administrators and teachers to start looking into ways which they could help prevent all these catastrophic injuries”.

He has also mentioned how important it is that all teachers involved in any physical sport be certified with Senior First Aid Training.

“School teachers involved in a physical sport such as rugby, soccer and any other sport need to have Senior First Aid Training because it gives them that added bonus and experience that they need, to help handle catastrophic injuries whilst awaiting for the professionals to arrive”.

Marist Brothers High School under 18 loose head prop Varasiko Savirio was rushed to hospital yesterday after a collapsed scrum left him lying on the ground complaining of severe neck pain.

Koong says that he was quite impressed with the response from the Marist officials.

“They had a Physio student on the field and once the scrum had collapsed, he stabilized the student who was lying face down on the ground. He did not move the player and called for an ambulance”.

Koong reiterated that it is also important for schools to start putting in place Emergency Action Plans.

“I would like to stress out to secondary schools that if they are going to have rugby training or any physical sport they should have Emergency Action Plans in place. Because if a catastrophic injury occur in school do they have the emergency numbers for the ambulance, which teacher is responsible for calling the ambulance, which teacher is responsible for clearing the ground where the injured player is lying and which teacher does the first aid work on the student”.

According to Koong, when he arrived at Marist yesterday, Savirio was lying face down on the ground in a stable position. With the help of National Fire Authority Officers they managed to turn him onto his back, where a collar was applied. Once mobilized onto a spinal board, he was taken to hospital in the National Fire Ambulance where the doctors x-rayed him and he was cleared.

“This is a blessing for Savirio but we need to stress the point that players need to be careful with catastrophic injuries and any injury that occur during scrimmaging or tackling sessions”. Koong said.

“If the player is lying down complaining of a lot of neck pain then it is the teachers responsibility to keep him lying on the ground and call for assistance”.

As the Marist Under 18 team prepares for their Deans quarter final tomorrow Koong had this piece of advice for Savirio.

“My advice to him is that even though he has been cleared, he needs to get a reviewed by an orthopedic surgeon to see that there is no damage. If there is any pain around the neck I would advise him to rest and not play tomorrow”.