MUHC physician to receive prestigious Pashby Sports Safety Award

Dr. Scott Delaney is the 2010 winner of the Pashby Sports Safety Award, given annually to the Canadian who has made outstanding contributions to the prevention of catastrophic injuries in sports and recreation. Delaney, who is the seventh recipient of the Pashby Award, is recognized for his research work on concussion and neck injuries in soccer, hockey and football and his efforts to raise awareness of these injuries.

“This award recognizes the team effort of physicians and athletes working to prevent concussion in sport,” says Delaney, an emergency and sport medicine physician at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), associate professor at McGill University, and research director of the Adult Emergency Department at the MUHC. Thousands of Canadians are admitted to hospital emergency rooms each year for acute head trauma, including concussions. Many more cases of concussion may go undiagnosed.

“Many athletes have a poor understanding of concussions and may continue actively participating in high-risk activities while suffering symptoms. We need to give people a more realistic understanding of the danger associated with concussions,” says Delaney,who also treats patients at the McGill Sport Medicine Clinic. “Education and prevention are key in helping to prevent this type of injury.”

“Dr. Delaney was chosen for the award because of his invaluable research comparing head and neck injuries in soccer, hockey and football,” says Dr. Bob Pashby, President of the Pashby Sports Safety Fund. “We are also impressed with his focus on soccer, whereas most of the research by others has been in hockey and football. He has worked primarily on a volunteer basis, to help implement a certifying standard for soccer headgear which has been adapted in the United States. He has also met with different state and national organizations in an effort to educate and persuade them to adapt protective headgear for soccer.”

Delaney, a 43-year-old native of Pointe-Claire, Quebec is a team physician for the Montreal Alouettes, the Montreal Impact, the McGill football and soccer teams, and the Cirque du Soleil. He has also worked with the Montreal Express lacrosse team and a number of professional boxers. The Pashby Sports Safety Award carries a $10,000 prize that will allow Dr. Delaney to continue his research on concussion injuries.

Delaney, who was educated in the Montreal area, at St. Thomas High School (‘84), John Abbott College (‘86) and McGill University (MDCM ’91), will receive his award and give a presentation on Saturday, November 13 during the Hockey Canada Concussion Seminar: www.HockeyCanada.ca

Dr. Vincent J. Lacroix, who nominated Dr. Scott Delaney, will give a presentation on Ice Traumas during the Hockey Canada Concussion Seminar. Vincent Lacroix is Associate Medical Director McGill Sport Medicine, Clinic, Primary Care Sport Medicine Physician at the MUHC and Head physician Montreal Alouettes. He is also Team physician Dept. Of Athletics, McGill University and a Sport Medicine Consultant Montreal Canadiens.

For more information on the Dr. Tom Pashby Sports Safety Award: www.drpashby.ca

About the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) One of the world’s foremost academic health centres, the MUHC offers exceptional and integrated patient-centric care, research and teaching. Highly committed to the continuum of care in its community and affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine of McGill University, The Montreal Children's Hospital, the Montreal General Hospital, the Royal Victoria Hospital, the Montreal Neurological Hospital, the Montreal Chest Institute and the Lachine Hospital of the MUHC value multidisciplinary service throughout the lifespan, innovative technologies and practices, strategic partnerships and leadership in knowledge transfer. The MUHC is currently carrying out a $2.25-billion Redevelopment Project on three campuses—the Mountain, the Glen and Lachine—designed to provide healthcare professionals with an effective environment in which to ensure patients and their families benefit from The Best Care for Life. The campuses are also anchored in best sustainable-development practices, including LEED® and BOMA BESt guidelines.
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The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI MUHC) is a world-renowned biomedical and health-care hospital research centre. Research is organized by eleven research axes (or programs). Located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, the Institute is the research arm of the McGill University Health Centre affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University. The Institute supports over 600 researchers, 1,000 graduate students, post-docs and fellows devoted to a broad spectrum of fundamental and clinical research. Over 1000 clinical research studies are conducted within our hospitals each year. The Research Institute of the MUHC is supported in part by the Fonds de la recherche en santé du Québec (FRSQ).
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About McGill University
McGill University, founded in Montreal, Que., in 1821, is Canada’s leading post-secondary institution. It has two campuses, 11 faculties, 10 professional schools, 300 programs of study and more than 35,000 students. McGill attracts students from more than 150 countries around the world. Almost half of McGill students claim a first language other than English – including 6,200 francophones – with more than 6,800 international students making up almost 20 per cent of the student body.
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