The NCAA is committed to supporting member schools in their efforts to safeguard student-athlete mental and physical health, safety and performance, including through effective infection control practices. In short, infection prevention is a vital component of student-athlete health and is essential to ensuring a safe and sustainable collegiate sports experience.
Management of Infectious Disease & Standard Precautions
Schools should consider standard precautions for purposes of infectious disease management. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), standard precautions are used for all patient care, are based on a risk assessment and make use of common-sense practices and personal protective equipment that are designed to protect health care providers from infection and prevent the spread of infection from patient to patient.
Standard precautions may include:
- Performing hand hygiene.
- Using personal protective equipment whenever there is an expectation of possible exposure to infectious material.
- Following respiratory hygiene/cough etiquette principles.
- Ensuring appropriate patient placement.
- Properly handling, cleaning and disinfecting patient care equipment and instruments/devices.
- Handling textiles and laundry carefully.
- Following safe injection practices.
- Ensuring health care worker safety including proper handling of needles and other sharps.
What can schools do to manage infectious diseases in sports teams?
- Establish Policies and Procedures. Schools should establish policies and procedures pertaining to prevention, identification and management of individuals with infectious diseases. These policies should address standard precautions for purposes of infection control. See the NCAA Sports Medicine Handbook for more administration considerations for the prevention and management of infectious disease in sport.
- Provide education and training.
- Effective education and training for athletes and staff on behaviors that reduce infection risk and infectious disease spread - such as hygiene practices, proper handwashing, equipment cleaning, symptom recognition, staying home when sick and seeking appropriate care from health care providers – helps create a safer environment and reduce the risk of infectious disease spread.
- Proper education and training in standard precautions enable athletic health care providers to consistently apply infection control measures and align clinical care with recommended guidelines.
Further, the CDC recommends that practitioners, including athletics health care providers, practice transmission-based precautions when patients/student-athletes may be infected or colonized with certain infectious agents (e.g., SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19) for which additional precautions are needed to prevent infection transmission. Transmission-based precautions are the second tier of basic infection control, especially for illnesses that may spread by droplet or airborne route.
What should schools consider for student-athletes returning to play after illness?
Schools should establish and clearly communicate return-to-play guidelines to all involved in the student-athlete’s medical management.
Additionally, schools should consider the most recent clinical guidance for return-to-play following acute viral infection, including the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology’s Clinical Considerations for Competitive Sports Participation for Athletes with Cardiovascular Abnormalities.
