In one of the more bizarre news stories of the last week, Texas Tech head football coach, Mike Leach has been suspended indefinitely, with his team about to play a bowl game, for allegedly confining a concussed player to an equipment room. The player Adam James is the son of Craig James, a college football analyst.
The school suspended Leach to investigate the charges. What is bizarre is that whether you believe the James family allegations that Leach ordered the player confined to an equipment room and an electrical locker, or the coach’s version that he was just isolated in bigger places, it is hard to find the conduct appropriate.
Apparently Coach Leach has not gotten the memo: Concussions are serious. They require proper diagnosis, treatment and monitoring. They are not the basis for false imprisonment, which incidentally is a tort and perhaps a crime. We have heard many stories of coaches and teams ignoring concussions, but never one of such bizarre treatment.
Just so there can be no ambiguity for Coach Leach and Texas Tech, go see what the CDC has to say about how concussions should be treated. The guidelines do not talk about isolation. The CDC has not only published a guide for physicians and others for the treatment of brain injury, they will send you a beautiful set of materials, detailing excellent information about such treatment. See http://www.cdc.gov/NCIPC/tbi/physicians_tool_kit.htm
While he waits on his suspension, Coach Leach’s homework should be to read the entire CDC toolkit, preferably in a quiet, isolated place.
Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
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