KGHA SAFETY IN ACTION

 

Safety is a collective group responsibility, one that KGHA takes very seriously. A keystone guiding principle of KGHA is that every member of our association, and all people who interact with our Association, be provided a safe environment. Creating a safe environment is the product of every member taking responsibility for, and being proactive in taking action or reporting, potential risks to or created by our membership.

RISK ASSESSMENTS

Annual Safety Plan.  Officials of every KGHA team shall conduct a risk management assessment for their team at the start of the season.  Copies of their assessment will be forwarded to the KGHA Director of Risk & Safety (DRS).  Risk assessment consists of four (4) basic steps, performed in a logical sequence:

• Step 1: Identify the risks connected with an activity (eg. game, locker room, arena parking lot, travel).
• Step 2: Assess the relative significance of all on-ice and off-ice risks.
• Step 3: Eliminate or minimise identified risks.
• Step 4: Provide protection against unavoidable risks.  This can include insurance coverage.

The DRS shall review these reports, collating notes of shared interest for posting and distribution.  There may also be a meeting of team officials to discuss findings from an Association perspective.

Facility Safety.  With KGHA teams travelling far and wide to compete, it is important to evaluate the risk associated with every location where your team participates.  To this end, KGHA teams shall perform a facility assessment using the KGHA Facility Risk Assessent Form every time they go into a location.  The purpose of this activity is to identify potential physical risks to our members posed by the facility housing the activity.   An electronic or paper copy shall be sent to the KGHA DRS for posting into the Safety Resource Library to create shared information.  Where risks have been identified, the Safety Committee shall advise the facility management organization so corrective action might be investigated.  As part of facility safety, teams should develop an Emergency Action Plan (EAP) for every rink they play in.  Proper preparation for an emergency can ensure that steps required obtaining needed medical care happen quickly and efficiently.  More detailed information can be found further in this section. 

 

CODE OF CONDUCT

This Code of Conduct identifies the standard of behaviour expected of all Kanata Girls Hockey Association (KGHA) members, including athletes, coaches, parents, directors, volunteers, staff, chaperones and others.  KGHA is committed to providing a sport environment in which all individuals are treated with respect. 

 

Members of this association shall conduct themselves at all times in a fair and responsible manner.  During the course of all activities and events when representing this association members shall avoid behaviour that brings KGHA or the sport of hockey into disrepute including, but not limited to:

 

·         Abusive use of alcohol and the non-medical use of prescription drugs.

·         Using unlawful or unauthorized narcotics, or performance enhancing drugs.

·         Comments or behaviour that is disrespectful, offensive, abusive, racist or sexist.

·         Condone, participate or encourage instances of “bullying”, “hazing’ or “initiation”.

·         Engage in activity or behaviour which endangers the safety of others or brings the game and KGHA into disrepute.

·         Behaviour constituting harassment or abuse.

 

As a basis of protecting our environment, KGHA advocates and enforces the following Codes of Conduct for:

 

• Coaches & Staff
• Players
• Parents 

During the registration and selection process, every person recognizes these codes and acknowledges their agreement to abide by them.  Any KGHA member who subsequently fails to comply with the rules and regulations of the Association, and this code of conduct, is subject to disciplinary action by the Officers of the Association.  These Officers are empowered to suspend the any member from activities of the association following a Disciplinary Hearing. 

Failure to comply with the terms of the suspension that is determined by the Association may be required to withdraw his/her membership from the Association and may include the cancellation of the membership of all registered players of the parent.

SUSPECTING OR WITNESSING HARASSMENT OR ABUSE

Any person who experiences, witnesses or has reason to believe that harassment has occurred is encouraged to make it known that the behaviour is unwelcome, offensive and contrary to the values of KGHA policy.  Although the complainant may disclose/report to any official of KGHA immediately, it is recommended for suspected minor cases of harassment, i.e., inappropriate jokes or unwelcome remarks that the initial level of intervention be at the complainant's Team.  If this fails to stop the harassment, then you should contact the Disciplinary Chair by filing a formal complaint.

Any person having reasonable grounds, through the course of Association business, activities or events, to believe that a child/youth/participant is being abused or neglected or who has reason to believe a major incident has occurred, such as inappropriate touching, fondling, kissing, solicitations of a physical nature, physical mistreatment, sexual mistreatment, inadequate moral guidance or emotional mistreatment, or repeated taunting, must document and report this belief/incident to their local Child Protection Agency and/or the Police as well as the KGHA Board of Directors.

To assist in reporting, we have detailed the process for lodging a complaint or reporting an infraction in our Reporting section of the website.  By filing with KGHA, your concerns become the official business of the Association who will involve the appropriate authorities as required by law.  We strongly encourage that you carefully consider all the factors before lodging any complaint to avoid opening yourself up to the process.  False claims will result in possible disciplinary and/or legal action

INSURANCE

 
Hockey Canada has a comprehensive insurance policy for its members.  All managers and trainers should also visit the OWHA insurance site and if further clarification is needed, contact the Risk and Safety executive.

OFF-ICE SAFETY

Off-ice activities can vary greatly in scope and risk, from fundraisers to dryland training to tournaments. This section is not an exhaustive list to account for every possibility, but a series of best practices that KGHA uses to mitigate most risks.  During any sanctioned event (see the insurance section for a definition) that includes off-ice activities teams must:

• Have a certified team coach and qualified trainer attend all activities.
• Employ the two-adult rule for supervision. Should the team be split into separate groups, each group must have qualified adult supervision.
• Ensure that all off-ice activities are related to the sport or team with a hockey purpose (improve fitness, team-building, fund raising,…).
• Be run by qualified people, using accepted techniques that minimize the chance of injury.
• Discourage and eliminate horseplay at any time.
• Secure OWHA Sanctions where appropriate.

Dressing Room Conduct

To minimize the risk that can occur in the dressing room, the following guidelines must be followed:

• A "No Males" poster shall be affixed to the dressing room door on arrival at the rink.  This is to provide notice to males outside the team "family" that they are not to enter the room
• Two-adult supervision. There must always be two adults in the dressing room at all times, both of which MUST BE FEMALE while the girls are changing.
• Players will not undress if any males are present in the room, regardless of the male’s age.
• Players should not walk around the dressing room with their skates on.
• Throwing of tape balls, snow, or any other items is prohibited.
• No wrestling or roughhousing, especially in the shower area.
• No mobile phones are allowed into dressing rooms including for text messaging purposes.
• Up to 10 minutes before and after ice-time, on confirmation that the girls are dressed by the locker moms, is designated as coaching staff only time.  No changing is to occur during this time.

Males in the dressing room.

The following policy shall be applied at all times:

• At Jr Fundamentals & Novice it is understood that Dad's will be needed in the room to help the players get ready.  The kids usually don't have the ability to dress themselves, especially tying skates.  Having said this, males should only help their own child, especially with next-to-skin and more “personal” items.
• For Atom, at the beginning of the season there may be a need but this should be reduced over the season, as decided by the head coach and agreed upon by ALL parents.  It is recommended that players change into and out of street clothes in the washroom if a male is in the room.
• For Peewee and up, any time a female is in any state of undress, the locker room shall be considered a NO GO ZONE for all males, no exceptions.  This includes dad, and any brothers
• Starting as soon as possible but no later than Peewee, any skate tying shall be done outside the dressing room or by the coaching staff.

This policy shall be strictly enforced for all KGHA events, without exception.  Violators shall be provided one warning by the team staff.  Any subsequent infractions must be referred to the KGHA Disciplinary Committee by following the discipline and grievance reporting procedure.

SPECIAL EVENTS SAFETY

The Hockey Canada insurance policy is designed to provide insurance for "sanctioned" hockey events.  Normally that means all on-ice activities, clinics, meetings and the like.  Activities outside the ones just mentioned should seek approval by the Branch (ODWHA) prior to the event or activity being held.  Prior approval will ensure that organisers of the event and KGHA are covered from liability. For assistance or further information, contact the KGHA DRS.

TRAVEL SAFETY

Travel safety is always a concern to us all and we all recognize that teams travel to play league games. This safety section is concerned more with extended travel for tournaments, exhibitions and playdowns.

Travel Permits. Teams require a travel permit when:

• A team wishes to enter a tournament to be held outside ODWHA boundaries.
• A team wishes to play an exhibition game and the game will take place outside the ODWHA boundaries, that is, the USA, Quebec or another Hockey Canada Branch.

·         No travel permits are necessary when playing a team within OWHA boundaries. 

Parental Permission Notes. It is understood that parents/legal guardians may note be able to go to every tournament or “road trip”.  Where this is the case and the player will be staying with another parent, a Permission to Travel form must be completed in duplicate. The player will retain one copy and the escorting parent the other.  Team officials must be made aware of all such arrangements

ON-ICE SAFETY
 

Equipment. Properly fitting and sanctioned equipment is a key component to on-ice safety. Equipment must be CSA approved and should be properly fitted. In addition to the specific equipment policies for players and staff found below, some of the basic equipment regulations are found in our Safety Resource Centre. To ensure this, KGHA enforces that team staffs will inspect every player’s equipment before going on the ice for the first time:

• At Tryouts/Sortouts.
• After teams are selected.
• After Christmas holidays

Also, players and parents are encouraged to discuss equipment options during the season when they are considering purchase. To assist in this area we have developed a short list of tips that you might find useful in our Parents Resource Page 

 

Players. All KGHA participants must adhere to the policies and procedures outlined in this Association’s safety program. All players must:

•  Be familiar and follow the Hockey Canada publications “Fair Play Means Safety for All” and “Safety Requires Teamwork”. 
• Wear equipment that meets the safety standards and rules set by Hockey Canada. 
• Ensure that they wear properly fitting equipment. 
• Wear full hockey gear if under the age of 16 for all KGHA and/or team official functions. A minimum of full shield helmet, skates, gloves and elbow pads if over 16 years of age. 

Staff. The team staffs are ultimately responsible to provide a safe environment for their players. They shall:

• Follow the principles and components of this KGHA policy and the Hockey Canada publications “Fair Play Means Safety for All” and “Safety Requires Teamwork”. 
• Enforce the rules, policies and codes of conduct of all components of your team’s membership.
• Ensure that only OWHA registered players and OWHA registered team officials may go on the ice or the bench for any team ice activities. Exceptions can be authorized for tryouts and special skills instructors upon request.
• Be responsible to ensure that equipment not only meets safety standards, but also fits properly.
• Wear a properly secured CSA approved helmet every time they go on the ice.  This includes crossing the ice surface before or after a game, going on the ice to shake hands before or after a game, and for the purpose of dealing with an injury.
• Make certain that all helpers wear full hockey gear if under the age of 16 for all KGHA and/or team official functions. A minimum of full shield helmet, skates, gloves and elbow pads if 16 years of age or over.
• Ensure that all persons under 16 years of age must wear a helmet while on the bench. This includes players, gate openers or any other persons employed on the bench.
• Make sure that responsible and certified instructors conduct off-ice activities and that team staff is providing continuous supervision and injury treatment coverage to the event.
• Guarantee that a certified coach and trainer are present at each practice and on the bench at every game played by a team of the KGHA.  In the event your, or the other team’s, trainer is not present it must be noted on the game sheets and the game goes on with the present one trainer covering both teams.  If the trainers for both teams are not present, there must be a qualified first aid person in the arena who will accept responsibility for both teams identified to the referee for the game to be allowed to go on.  This will normally fall to the home team first.

INJURIES

Although we don't like to see injuries happen to our players, they are a part of the game and will always be present, no matter how much we mitigate risks. When an injury does occur, it is important that it is documented.

 

PLAYER HEALTH INFORMATION

The trainer must obtain a completed and signed KGHA Player Health Information form as soon as possible once the team is formed.  Once submitted to the trainer, this information, like all player information, is completely confidential.  The player health information is not to be disclosed or discussed with anyone, including other team officials, unless materially relevant to the player’s ability to participate in team functions, and in this case only to the relevant team official.

Practically speaking, there is often player health information that the coach(es) need to be aware of – for example, an asthmatic or diabetic player.  If in doubt, contact the Director of Risk & Safety for guidance.

The trainer must maintain two (2) copies of each Player Health Information Form with them at all times. This is in case of injury and the player has to go to the hospital, the copy of the Player Health Information Form can be provided to the ambulance attendant or whomever might be accompanying them. As well, the completed Injury Report Form should be filled out and accompany the player either home or to the hospital.

A recommended practice would be to have your Player Health Information Forms arranged in alphabetical order in a folder or binder, along with the Injury Log and blank copies of the Injury Report Form.  Then all required reference material and paperwork are readily available.

EMERGENCY ACTION PLAN (EAP)

Everyone hopes that a true emergency does not occur, but given the nature of hockey they can and do happen.  Proper preparation for an emergency can ensure that steps required to obtain needed medical care happen quickly and efficiently.  

Every team in the KGHA is required to develop an EAP.  It is the trainer’s responsibility to ensure that the EAP is setup and communicated to all the team officials, players and parents.  There are a number of identified roles required in an EAP, the trainer often being the prime.  Each role requires a backup person and it is the responsibility of the role holder to ensure that backup is provided when they are not available

 

PROTECTING YOUR PRIVACY

The Kanata Girls Hockey Association is committed to respecting your Privacy. We recognize that when you choose to provide us with information about yourself, you trust us to act in a responsible manner. That is why we have put a policy in place to protect your personal information. 

 

Kanata Girls Hockey Association and its affiliate, the Ottawa Senators Women’s Hockey Club, have one Privacy Policy that applies to four categories of individuals:

• Players
• Parents
• Executive
• Volunteers

This Privacy Policy is based upon the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) Model Code and reflects the requirements of applicable legislation.