Slipping Through the Cracks? Concussion Management in Aotearoa New Zealand Secondary Schools.
Danielle Salmon, Marelise Badenhorst, Anja Zoellner and 7 others
PMID 39834089WHAT IT FOUND
Stakeholders described inconsistent concussion care in schools, with students often slipping through the cracks due to poor communication and lack of clear return-to-learn guidelines.
A designated school contact person and direct healthcare guidance to teachers were seen as vital for supporting recovery.
Key findings
01Return-to-play protocols were often clearer than return-to-learn strategies, which participants described as non-existent or disjointed.
02Communication breakdowns between parents, schools, and healthcare providers were a major barrier, often resulting in students not being identified or supported.
03Having a key contact person in the school, such as a nurse or administrator, to initiate and coordinate the return-to-learn process was perceived as vital.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study was qualitative and explored perceptions rather than measuring clinical outcomes or treatment efficacy. Participants were recruited from urban schools in New Zealand, which may not reflect rural or international contexts. The findings rely on self-reported experiences and may not capture all instances of concussion management.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was supported by non-U.S. government funding.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret these findings as evidence that a specific concussion management framework improves patient outcomes. The study reports stakeholder perceptions of barriers and facilitators in school processes, not clinical efficacy data.