Published using Google Docs
Emergency Action Plan
Updated automatically every 5 minutes

OTTAWA FUSION VOLLEYBALL CLUB

www.ottawafusion.ca

ACTION PLAN

Emergency

Last updated: August 19, 2021

Emergency situations may arise at any time during athletic events.  Coaching staff and parents need to be prepared to manage these situations.  The responsibilities and processes below should be reviewed regularly by all parties involved.

Unless there is a municipal, provincial, federal or public health directive to the contrary that may change the OFVC normal practice, this policy is in effect.

Responsibilities

Club (Board of Directors)

The Club is primarily responsible for establishing emergency procedures and advising teams on their implementation.  This includes:

Coaching Staff

The coaching staff is primarily responsible for the safety of their players. This includes:

Note that this does not relieve players from their responsibility for participating in activities with caution and maturity.  

Team Managers[1]

Team managers are primarily responsible for communicating with parents to advise them of the situation.  This includes:

Additional responsibilities related to specific situations will be outlined below.

Injury Management

If the injured athlete’s parent[2] is onsite, they will be responsible for all decisions regarding medical treatment.  If the injured athlete’s parent is not onsite, the initial care provider (see below), possibly in consultation with onsite medical personnel, will make decisions regarding necessary treatment.

Medical information, including information about medical conditions, allergies, injuries, and medications is collected for each athlete at the time of their registration with the club.  This medical information is provided to team managers and coaches.  Parents are asked to sign a medical release allowing team personnel to solicit treatment for injury or illness when parents are not onsite.  If a parent has chosen not to sign the release, they are responsible for ensuring that appropriate emergency contact information is available to team personnel at all times.

Handling Minor Injuries

Minor injuries are those that can be managed onsite by coaching staff, the athlete’s parent or onsite medical personnel (at larger tournaments like Provincials, Nationals).   In many cases, these injuries can initially be dealt with by coaching staff ‘on the bench’ - each team has a stocked medical kit.  If the injured athlete’s parent is not in attendance at a tournament, the parent or emergency contact should be notified of the injury and the head coach may assign a parent onsite to monitor the injured athlete for the remainder of the day.  Coaches may recommend that an injured athlete seek medical attention after the tournament or practice.  If so, a signed release from a doctor may be required before a player can return to practice/play.  Minor injuries should be reported by the Team Manager via email to the VP-Team Relations at least monthly.

Handling Serious Injuries

A serious injury is one that requires some form of medical attention that cannot be provided onsite (e.g. suspected broken bones, severe sprain, back, head or neck injury).  Head injuries should always be treated as a serious injury.  Once an initial assessment of the injury is made, a decision will be made as to whether emergency response is needed or if the athlete can be released to a parent.


Emergency Response Roles and Responsibilities

Role

Responsible

Responsibilities/Notes

Practice

Tournament

Initial care provider

Head Coach

Head Coach

- if assistant coach has first aid training, he/she may play this role

- responsible for initial assessment of injury and determination if emergency response is necessary or if athlete can be released to parents (if onsite)

Medical equipment  availability

Coaching Staff

Coaching Staff & Tournament personnel

- check team med kit at least monthly to ensure that it is appropriately stocked

- should know where the defibrillator is located and how to use it if one is available at the facility

- for tournaments, coaching staff should make themselves aware of any medical personnel or equipment that are available onsite

EMS Activation

Team Manager

Tournament personnel

- must have cell phone available and know the location of a land line if needed - call 9-1-1 to request emergency response if necessary (Call sheet provided below)

Directing EMS

Assigned parent or older (17U+) athlete

Tournament personnel

- wait outside for EMS to arrive

- direct to closest access point

Contacting parents / emergency contact

Team Manager

Team Manager

- if parents of the injured athlete are not onsite at the time, they should be contacted immediately

Managing remaining athletes

Assistant Coach / Team Manager

Coaching staff / Team Manager

- if it is safe to do so, practice can continue under the direction of coaching staff

- if not, parents should be contacted to pick up athletes

- at tournaments, at least one member of the coaching staff must remain with athletes

Monitoring the injured athlete (when parent is not onsite)

Team Manager or Assigned parent

Team Manager or Assigned parent

- may be required to accompany the athlete to hospital and stay with them until parents arrive

Documenting the incident

Head Coach & Team Manager

Head Coach & Team Manager

- Injury Incident report form should be completed and submitted to the club as soon as reasonably possible

Additional Notes:

Medical Conditions

Medical information collected from athletes identifies any medical conditions that coaches need to be aware of.  Coaches should familiarize themselves with this information and seek clarification from parents if they have any questions/concerns.

Allergies

Asthma

Other Conditions

Evacuation Procedures

There are a variety of situations in which the evacuation of a facility may be required (e.g. power outage, flood, fire).  In some situations, it may be safe to remain in the facility until athletes can be picked up by parents (controlled evacuation) but in others, emergency evacuation may be necessary to avoid injury or loss of life.

All participants (athletes, coaches, parents) need to be aware of the evacuation procedures and evacuation meeting points for the team’s activities (practice, tournament, hotel stays and other team events).    

Practices

Tournaments

Hotel


[1] In this document references to Team Manager can refer to another designated or assigned parent if the Team Manager is not present for the activity

[2] Parent throughout this document refers to parent or guardian