Carrie Graf: the role of a coach in concussion management
High performance basketball coach Carrie Graf has seen a huge shift in the perception of concussion within sport over her 25-year career and believes the coach's role is more important now than ever.
25 November 2024
High performance basketball coach Carrie Graf has seen a huge shift in the perception of concussion within sport over her 25-year career and believes the coach's role is more important now than ever.
As a 12-time WNBL champion player herself, Graf unfortunately is all too familiar with concussion, despite the misconception of basketball being a ‘non-contact sport’.
“It comes as a surprise to most, but concussion happens quite regularly in basketball from players getting an elbow to the head or being contacted while in the air and hitting their head on the wooden floor,” Graf said.
“If a head knock happened back in the day we would just get up and keep playing, but over the past five to ten years there has been a monumental shift in awareness and understanding of concussion and that just wouldn’t happen today.”
Graf believes the role of the coach in concussion management has also evolved in the past decade as more research emerged highlighting the seriousness of the brain injury.
“Coaches are much more alert to the causes and symptoms of concussion, and when they need to extract players from the field of play and go through the concussion protocol.
“Whether it’s at the high performance level or junior sport, knocks to the head are to be taken seriously and as a coach if you don’t have medical staff with you, it’s critical you don’t inject the athlete back into the game until they seek professional medical help.”
Graf encourages coaches of all age groups and skill levels to work with their athletes to build a supportive environment in which concussion can be discussed openly.
"Athletes don’t want to miss games or training, but the best modern-day coaches are those that create an environment where their athletes feel like they're in a safe and trusting environment where they can speak honestly about sustaining a head injury.”
Graf share her experience with concussion as part of the AIS 2024 Concussion and Brain Health position statement. To learn more about the position statement and online resources, visit the Concussion in Sport website here.
