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PROVO — Concussions may be one of the biggest worries for parents of student-athletes. A Utah company has developed an app to evaluate players after an injury in real time.
The app is called Canary Concussion. A Provo speech and language technology company saw an opportunity to take the Standard Sport Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT) used by coaches and trainers on the field and, instead of using pen and paper on a clipboard, electronically give detailed results in real time.
"What we did is take those protocols and make them easier for the athlete to interact with, but we haven't changed the protocol," said Henry O'Connell, CEO of Canary Speech.
The app compares an athlete's response after an injury to a baseline answer previously recorded. The app quickly calculates a score to allow a coach or parent to make a decision about resuming play. Even a doctor can be brought into the discussion and see the results through a secure email.
“So, they can have a physician look at this remotely, listen to the athlete, actually hear the athlete while they conducted their sideline assessment, and compare that to their baseline assessment," O’Connell said.
While emotions run high on the sidelines during a game, a decision to return a player to the game or bench the athlete can impact his or her future.
"I think there has been more attention on concussions and what it actually entails," said Austin Collie, a former BYU football star and NFL player.
His professional career was cut short because of concussions, and he's giving his perspective to the app developers to help young athletes.
"This is a step that needs to be taken in youth sports, and the more information you have the better," Collie said. "I wish I would have had more information.”
The Canary Concussion app is being used now by a few high schools in the country, but it is expected to be available on the iTunes App Store by the end of September.
Parents will be able to buy the app for use by one athlete, for an unlimited number of times, at an annual price tag of $20. Families with three or more children using the app will be able to purchase it for $50 a year.
