Return-to-Learn Accommodations and Concussion Perceptions Among Indiana High School Principals.

OBJECTIVE: Care after concussion is important for all patients, although especially critical in children and adolescents because of continued rapid brain growth and maturation. Postconcussion symptoms often lead to impaired school performance. Conflicting data regarding best return-to-learn practices make it difficult for school administrators to develop policies to best accommodate concussed students. We sought to assess high school principals' knowledge of concussion, the personnel responsible for implementing accommodations, and the overall willingness to enact recommended academic accommodations.

METHODS: In our cross-sectional study, we surveyed 410 Indiana high school principals (157 responded). Assistant principals were excluded.

RESULTS: One-third of the respondents received academic accommodations training for concussed students and more than 80% were somewhat or very comfortable with academic management. Greater than 90% were willing to provide accommodations as long as necessary. However, nearly 40% of responding principals were unlikely or unwilling to implement accommodations for standardized testing. National and state data suggest the median Indiana high school should expect 30 and more concussions per year; more than 90% of principals estimated that fewer than 30 concussions occurred each year at their school.

CONCLUSIONS: The underestimation of concussion frequency highlights an opportunity for further education of high school principals to ensure all concussed students receive appropriate return-to-learn accommodations.