Representatives from Vanderbilt Sports Medicine and Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt will take part in the kickoff event for Safe Stars, a new rating system that allows parents to check if youth sports leagues in Tennessee follow state-recommended safety protocols.
Safe Stars is the nation’s first statewide rating system for all types of youth leagues.
The kickoff is from 10:30 a.m. to noon, Wednesday, May 2, at Bridgestone Arena. Representatives from professional and collegiate sports teams as well as leading health, community, athletic and govermental agencies from across the state will take part in the celebration.
The initiative is a collaboration between the Tennessee Department of Health and the Program for Injury Prevention in Youth Sports (PIPYS) at Vanderbilt.
“Sport has the power to transform lives. It’s all of our responsibility to make sure that happens in a safe and positive way. My hope is that Safe Stars will be the roadmap for making Tennessee the safest and healthiest state in the country for our youth athletes,” said Alex Diamond DO, MPH, associate professor of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, Pediatrics and director of PIPYS.
Participation by sports leagues is voluntary. The program awards bronze, silver and gold star safety ratings. The bronze designation covers the most important safety protocols: emergency action plan, background checks on all coaches, constant presence of a CPR/AED certified coach, severe weather policy, anaphylaxis emergency plan and coaches being trained to recognize and manage concussion and sudden cardiac arrest incidents.
Leagues that meet two more safety protocols get a silver rating. Those that achieve four or more are awarded a gold rating.
A committee of Vanderbilt University Medical Center experts and Tennessee Department of Health officials, along with coaches, parents and administrators directly involved with youth sports, agreed upon the actions for the star designations.
Go here for more information about Safe Stars.
