Concussion Awareness and Education among Sports Resource Providers in Uganda : Piloting the Concussion Awareness Training Tool (CATT)

While concussion is an acknowledged as a significant sport-related injury, the implementation of international guidelines on concussion management in low income countries can be challenging. The Concussion Awareness Training Tool (CATT, cattonline.com) is an accessible online concussion resource with up-to-date evidence-based content. The objectives of this pilot study in Uganda were to educate health professionals, coaches, and sport managers on the recognition and management of concussion in sports; and to evaluate the effectiveness of the e-learning CATT concussion educational sessions among health professionals, coaches, and sport managers. In-person CATT training sessions were held for health professionals, and for coaches and sports managers; 74 participants participated in the evaluation of these sessions. Participants who took the CATT for medical professionals training experienced significant improvement of their confidence in recognizing a concussion, in reaching out to someone with a concussion, and in supporting someone with a concussion; overall concussion knowledge also increased significantly (p=0.000). Participants who took the CATT for coaches training experienced significant improvement of their confidence in referring someone with concussion to a professional, in recognizing a concussion, in reaching out to someone with a concussion, and in supporting someone with a concussion; overall concussion knowledge also increased significantly (p=0.002). Participant opinions about CATT were very positive overall, and challenges for delivering online concussion training in Uganda were identified.