2024 Serious Injuries WHAT IS A SERIOUS INJURY? Serious injuries have the potential to result in permanent disablement to players. These are reportable incidents: 1. A head or spinal injury or medical event (e.g. a heart attack) that results in the player being admitted to the hospital. 2. An injury or medical event (e.g. a heart attack) that results in the death of a player during match play or rugby training. 3. An injury that is expected to result in some permanent disability (e.g. loss of use of a limb, loss of an eye). WHAT IS A NEAR MISS? A serious injury of a player in the above categories who fully recovers. Head Rugby’s a great game. Just ask the thousands of people who pull on their jerseys every weekend – no matter what the weather may be. Most games, players walk off the field, sometimes quite muddy, and very happy. Every so often, someone is very seriously injured. Occasionally, the injury can be life changing. That is why we’re here. There were 68 serious injuries in 2024, and we acknowledge the players, their parents, Spine Heart Deceased Other Serious Injury Reported (i.e. Near Miss) grandparents, partners, siblings, friends, and children who were affected. We understand that it’s a challenging and stressful time. We also know that every single journey is different. Our support is what is required, sitting alongside the health system. We are proud to have provided as much mental health support as we have and also acknowledge our funders and donors who have supported us in this specific area. NEAR MISS 2024 numbers Male Female While there were 82 reported injuries, only 68 of them were near misses. TRUE MISS 2024 numbers Male Female 49 19 68 Head Spine Heart (Heart Club member) 59 23 82 23 29 1 4 11 14 82 72% 28% 100% 28% 35% Surgery – spine 1% Surgery – face 5% 13% 17% 100% Surgery – Head Surgery – Other 3 10 19 16% 53% 100% 1 5% 5 26% Deceased (One TBI, three deceased) Other Serious Injury Reported (i.e. Near Miss) 23 29 1 4 11 0 68 72% 28% 100% 34% 43% 1% 6% 16% 0% 100% We provided direct assistance to 68 families, ensuring they received the necessary support and navigation. We partnered with a health system that primarily provides excellent primary medical emergency response. NEW ZEALAND RUGBY FOUNDATION INC. CC42547 11
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