About ASA Program

 

Athletes Saving Athletes (ASA™) is A4IA’s signature program and a natural extension of the Foundation’s charter to help reduce the risk and incidence of injury and death to student athletes.

Launched in 2012, ASA™ harnesses the power of peer-to-peer communication and the value of educating student athletes in basic sports safety.

Taught exclusively by certified athletic trainers, Athletes Saving Athletes® is a unique three hour educational program that teaches recognition and understanding of signs and symptoms of sports related injuries and chronic medical conditions.

The curriculum, which was developed by a team of medical experts from across the U.S., covers concussion, head and neck injuries, heat illness, sudden cardiac arrest, diabetes and asthma, and stresses the importance of notifying a certified athletic trainer, coach or other supervising adult immediately when a teammate is in trouble. In addition to learning to recognize and understand signs and symptoms, program participants learn Hands Only CPR and are introduced to the function and purpose of the AED (Automated External Defibrillator).

The curriculum includes the compelling video stories of the program’s three Founding ASA™ Ambassadors: Tommy Mallon, a lacrosse player who received a catastrophic head and neck injury; nationally ranked tennis player Brittan Sutphin, who suffered sudden cardiac arrest while swimming; and Will James, a football player who nearly died due to exertional heat stroke.

The motto of the ASA™ program is: “What you know may save someone you know.” Program graduates become ASA™ Ambassadors, committed to sharing the value of learning sports safety education and using that knowledge on and off the playing field.