Will My Daughter Get Hurt Playing Field Hockey?

Instead of going off
to college to prepare for matrimony as their grandmothers did, today’s young
women are spreading their wings and flying in ways that were once unimaginable.
One big change is women’s increased participation in collegiate athletics. It’s fun and exciting, but it also gives parents a new worry: the risk of serious injury to their daughters.

Field hockey has
grown in popularity as both a high school and college sport for women.
According to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), field hockey
is one of the most popular sports worldwide and is growing in the United
States, particularly among women. From the 1988-1989 to 2002-2003 school years,
participation in NCAA women’s field hockey increased 12%. Over 250 colleges
offer women’s field hockey and over five thousand women participate each year.

The benefits of
women’s field hockey include physical exercise, the pride of team competition,
and personal development. But the risks of physical injury are not
insignificant. Field hockey participants wear protective equipment to minimize
risk of injury. USA Field Hockey rules for competition include the following
face, head and eye protection that is legal for competition under standards set
by ASTM International, a materials standardization organization:

A smooth
transparent or white, but otherwise dark, plain colored face mask which fits
flush with the face.

Soft protective
head covering.

Plastic goggles
with a soft covered frame and plastic lenses.

Most serious field
hockey injuries result from the player being struck by the stick or the ball. A
field hockey ball is made of hard plastic. It weighs between 5.5 and 5.75
ounces and may travel at speeds of up to 100 miles per hour. The Journal of
Athletic Training reports that there are an estimated 4,600 field hockey
injuries every year. The hands and wrists are injured most frequently,
followed by the face and the lower leg-foot-ankle. The most frequent injuries
among women players are contusions and abrasions, strains and sprains,
fractures, and lacerations.

What can a parent
do? The biggest challenge, as
most parents know, is that young people tend to believe that they are
invincible. They just don’t believe that they can get seriously hurt, and they
may take a casual attitude towards wearing protective gear.

Here are some
measures recommended by the Accident Research Centre at Monash University in
Victoria, Australia, that players and parents can take to help ensure that
players are less prone to injury:

Before the game:

Pre-participation
screening of players

Pre-season fitness
program and conditioning

Adequate hydration
and nutrition

Adequate pre-game
stretch and warm-up

Prophylactic
bracing and taping

During the game:

Wearing of proper
footwear and protective equipment (shin guards, mouthguards)

Safe playing
environment

Control of
dangerous play by officials and coach

Prompt access to
professional first aid and medical care

Availability of
first aid equipment on site

Rest, Ice,
Compression, Elevation, Referral (RICER) if injured

Return to play only
when fit

After the game:

Cool-down and
post-game stretch

All competitive
sports involve some risk. If parents and coaches and players work together,
your daughter’s participation in field hockey or any other sport can be a
valuable part of her school or college experience.