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Sports-safety institute launches consumer website and e-learning portal for coaches in stateSEATTLE, Dec. 5, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As the 2016 winter sports season swings into high gear, the UW Medicine Sports Health and Safety Institute (SHSI) today announced the launch of the UW Medicine eLearning Portal for all Washington state middle school and high school coaches. The site provides state-mandated training on concussion and other key health issues important to active youth. SHSI is rolling out the cloud-based tool in partnership with the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA), the state's governing body of high school and middle school sports.  UW Medicine's eLearning Portal contains self-guided, online learning courses covering concussion, sudden cardiac arrest, heat and hydration, nutrition and first aid. Upon completion of each course, participants will receive WIAA certification, a requirement for all youth coaches in the state. Coaches can gain access at no charge to the eLearning courses through their school's athletic director or the WIAA coaches' portal. In parallel with the eLearning Portal for WIAA coaches, SHSI also launched its website, which provides student athletes and the adults around them with balanced, evidence-based resources to better inform the important decisions they make every day. Materials on the website include tools for identifying and managing concussions, information on the benefits of physical activity, tips on training, sumaries of current research and information on how athletes can enroll in medical research studies. "SHSI's core purpose is to provide unbiased guidance, based on the best research, and these online tools greatly help us achieve those goals," said Dr. Stan Herring, director of SHSI and medical director of the UW Medicine Sports, Spine and Orthopedic Health program. "Because we believe that sports have both inherent risks and the potential to make a lasting, positive contribution to each participant's physical, mental, social and emotional health, the type of information taught in the eLearning Portal and available on our website is crucial to share with all stakeholders in youth sports." "The new UW Medicine Sports Health and Safety Institute eLearning Portal will give coaches from across our state easy access to clear and current information that is needed to keep our young people safe, while continuing to encourage active, healthy lifestyles for our student-athletes," said Mike Colbrese, executive director of the WIAA. "We're proud of our affiliation with the UW Medicine Sports Health and Safety Institute on this project that will have an immediate and lasting impact on the safety of sports in Washington." Founded in 2015, SHSI focuses on three core activities:
The Institute was largely inspired by the personal story of Zackery Lystedt, a Washington teenager who returned to play after suffering a concussion in a football game, and was treated for a major head injury at Harborview Medical Center/UW Medicine. Advocacy headed by Herring and others led to the Zackery Lystedt Law, which regulates athletes' return to play after a suspected concussion. The law was first passed in Washington and quickly adopted by all 50 states and the District of Columbia. UW Medicine Sports Health and Safety Institute SHSI is an international education, advocacy and research organization devoted to helping people pursue an active lifestyle while providing tools to keep them safe and speed healing after illness or injury. Learn more at uwmedicine.org/sportshealth. Media Contact: Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160224/337121LOGO
To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sports-safety-institute-launches-consumer-website-and-e-learning-portal-for-coaches-in-state-300372902.html SOURCE UW Medicine 
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