Hospital supports local athletes

Temperatures in Georgia can stay hot from early spring deep into fall and these conditions can cause health issues for athletes practicing or playing in the heat. Piedmont Fayette Hospital continued its partnership with Fayette County Public Schools by providing misting fans for each of the five public high school’s athletic departments.

“Heat-related illness can be very serious and, according to the Center for Disease Control, is the third- leading cause of death among high school athletes,” said Michael Behr, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon who has worked with athletes from high school through the professional level. “When I presented a possible solution to this problem for our local athletes to Piedmont Fayette they immediately jumped on board.”

The hospital purchased an Island Breeze Misting Fan for each of the five county high schools. Each fan provides 800 square feet of relief for athletes. Heat-related illnesses, like heat stroke, occur when the body can’t effectively cool down. This can lead to some serious side effects like low blood pressure, irregular heartbeats and loss of consciousness. By sitting near the fans, athletes can cool their core body temperature to regular levels.

Providing misting fans to the high school’s athletic programs is just one way that Piedmont Fayette is doing all it can to keep local student athletes safe. Another way is addressing concussions. The hospital introduced ImPACT, which helps establish a baseline for student athletes to measure the effects of a concussion, in 2016. Middle school and high school student-athletes complete a 20-minute computerized assessment to establish a baseline score. If a concussion is suspected during the athletic season, a follow-up test is administered to see if the results have changed from the baseline. If the baseline test determines that an athlete has suffered a concussion, the player’s physician, school’s athletic trainers and Piedmont Fayette work together, following an established concussion management protocol, to treat the concussion.

Since 2016, close to 6,000 student athletes in middle schools and high schools in Fayette County, have participated in baseline testing. There have been more than 100 post-injury tests taken in the county as well.

“Piedmont Fayette is committed to the health and safety of the community and these misting fans and the ImPACT program help keep our student athletes safe both on and off the field,” said Piedmont Fayette CEO Michael Burnett.

For more information about services provided by Piedmont Fayette Hospital, visit piedmont.org