Health And Safety
Also in this section:
General Rules & Requirements for League Participation Eligibility
Abu Dhabi Harlequins Rugby Club prioritises the health and safety of it’s players and requires that all managers, coaches, qualified first aiders, parents and players commit to ensuring that the well-being of our players is considered at all times.
First-Aid Volunteers Invited
The club welcomes anyone who would like to volunteer to carry out the role of ‘First Aider’ at competitive matches and throughout training sessions. If you are already qualified or if you would like to undertake an appropriate training course in order to volunteer for this role, please contact the club Medical Officer at
(Please note qualifications required by the UAE Rugby include those that are recognised by the DHA/HAAD/MOH or an equivalent qualification from a nationally recognised Awarding Body and World Rugby Level 1 Medical Certificate)
Concussion Management
Abu Dhabi Harlequins is taking a firm stance on protecting athletes and raising awareness about concussion injuries within our sporting community.
| Recognise and Remove | |
| The Club advocates the World Rugby ‘Recognise and Remove’ approach to Concussion. Please see the following video: https://youtu.be/JA-Qcfh6gSs | |
| Graduated Return to Play | |
| Club protocol also requires a ‘Graduated Return To Play’ following concussion. Please see the following information from the England Rugby Website: https://www.englandrugby.com/mm/Document/MyRugby/Headcase/01/30/49/57/returntoplayafterconcussion_Neutral.pdf | |
| Baseline Cognitive Assessment | |
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Players are also advised to undertake a baseline cognitive assessment pre-season (or at least 6 weeks from the date of any injury to the head). This includes a short, online computer based test that gives an objective measure of working memory speed, processing speed, attention, learning and working memory accuracy. A further test should then be undertaken following a suspected concussion/injury to the head. While it has been validated as part of the assessment in diagnosing concussion, it is only part of the diagnostic process but is accepted as an extremely helpful one. (Please note, undertaking this assessment would be at a cost to the player and is not mandatory). The club have partnered with UpandRunning (https://upandrunningdubai.com/) who works with Headsmart (https://www.headsmart.me/ ) to offer this online test (although please note that other providers are available within the UAE). Please use the following link to UpandRunning in order to register for the baseline assessment: https://upandrunningdubai.com/services/treat-me/concussion-screening/register-concussion-screening/ Once completed, UpandRunning will advise about the process required to obtain the maximum benefit from the results following any suspected concussion. |
Protective Headgear Pros & Cons
Please see below links to studies carried out in respect to the use of protective headgear. Abu Dhabi Harlequins advocates that parents and players make themselves aware of the research and findings currently available to decide if the use of protective headgear is the right choice for them. Three articles can be found below, but we do also encourage players and parents to conduct their own research and draw their own conclusions:
First Aid Provision at Competitive Matches
Please see the attachments below to for information relating to:-