KPE doctoral student Michael Jorgensen is quoted in this article on CBC Sports about his research into how athletes navigate concussion risk and how they react to new policies and protocols.
Michael Jorgensen believes he's suffered two concussions playing rugby, including one that caused him to miss the opportunity to take the law school admission test when he was in university.
Now a PhD candidate at the University of Toronto's faculty of kinesiology and physical education, Jorgensen studies how athletes navigate concussion risk and how they react to new policies and protocols. He also continues to play the sport and work as a match official.
For the last couple of years, Jorgensen has been studying Rugby Canada's blue card pilot program in Ontario, interviewing match officials about their experience handing out blue cards.
At first, he said match officials had concerns around liability and whether they'd be qualified to detect concussion symptoms. He believes many concerns have been addressed since the program was fully implemented throughout the province and officials have received more education.
"It's just reassuring that, OK, we're not looking for a diagnosis, we're just looking to play it safe," Jorgensen said.