Hey there Safety Goal Podcast listeners, I’m your host Justin Torres and I wanted to let all of you know that our first season has come to a close. While this is the last you’ll hear from us at The Safety Goals Podcast for 2023, I am happy to say that we will be back with new episodes in 2024 with new guests and perhaps some familiar voices. Until then, stay safe, stay healthy, and happy holidays from all of us at The Safety Goals Podcast…we will see you in 2024.

All music in this episode is courtesy of: https://⁠www.bensound.com⁠/ 

Visit us at: ⁠https://www.injurefree.com/⁠

On this week’s episode of The Safety Goals Podcast, we have Stephanie Kuzydym. Stephanie is a DuPont and Emmy-award winning sports reporter, covering both the good and bad of high school sports. With her career taking her to places such as Houston and Cleveland, Stephanie has seen quite a bit during her time reporting. Her ability to have seen different issues affect different regions gives her a unique view on the problems facing youth sports. So much so that she began the Safer Sidelines Project which focuses on covering the unnecessary deaths in youth sports. 

What causes these tragic losses can vary in Stephanie’s findings, however, her work highlights the need for all individuals in sports to be aware of things such as the proper way to perform CPR, or where the nearest AED device may be located. Knowing these and many other important aspects can ultimately be the difference between life and death. We also dive into other factors in youth sports environments that lead to unsafe playing environments, such as budget issues, lack of awareness, and or preparation. There is a ton to unpack but we do hope you enjoy this edition of The Safety Goals Podcast with our guest Stephanie Kuzydym.

Safer Sidelines Project: www.courier-journal.com/SaferSidelines

All music in this episode is courtesy of: https://⁠www.bensound.com⁠/ 

Visit us at: ⁠https://www.injurefree.com/⁠

On this week’s episode of The Safety Goals Podcast, we have Carlos Quentin. Carlos is a former MLB athlete who played with teams such as the Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago White Sox, and San Diego Padres during his career. Setting records in both the minors and major leagues for being hit by a pitch, records which still hold to this day. The two-time MLB All-Star may have had injuries cut his career a few years short, but since leaving the league Carlos has been hard at work with his project known as Before The Field. 

We will be covering what Carlos and Before The Field hope to accomplish in the future, along with learning how Carlos has taken his experience as a professional athlete to help the youth level develop in an effective manner. Carlos is also a father who hopes he can shape youth sports into an environment parents would be happy to place their kids in and have them feel safe and taken care of. With all that being said, we have an amazing episode with a great guest, so we hope you enjoy listening to our conversation with Carlos Quentin, formerly of the MLB and current founder of Before The Field.

All music in this episode is courtesy of https://⁠www.bensound.com⁠/ 

Visit us at ⁠https://www.injurefree.com/⁠

On this week’s episode of The Safety Goals Podcast, we have Scott Gray. Scott works for Minnesota Hockey as their VP and SafeSport Coordinator, along with being the owner of the Gray Investigative Group. In this episode, we discuss how Scott works to help keep youth athletes safe through his many investigations into poor/improper behavior from both athletes and coaches. He recently sat in front of Congress to speak on the ways in which youth sports and organizations tied to the Olympic movement have attempted to create safer playing environments. Scott dives into his career when he first joined Minnesota Hockey and how it has progressed all the way till now.

We will also be covering how the SafeSport program is meant to operate and what it has done in recent years with large scandals coming from within the Olympic movement. The main point of emphasis is that background checks are needed in order to keep athletes safe from potential predators but also how the investigation process needs to be sped up to help keep these individuals out of youth sports in any way possible. There is a ton to cover on this topic, but Scott does a terrific job of helping us navigate and understand what is truly going on at the youth and Olympic levels. We hope you enjoy the show!

All music in this episode is courtesy of https://⁠www.bensound.com⁠/

Visit us at ⁠https://www.injurefree.com/⁠

On this week’s episode of The Safety Goals Podcast, we have a short but informative episode where we take a look at injuries in professional sports and see how rule changes were made to reduce the chances of these injuries arising, along with how these rule changes have made their way down to the youth level. Often rule changes at the youth level derive from some sort of action being taken at the professional level. Today, we take a look at concussions in the NFL, as well as high ankle sprains in the NBA. While both of these injuries do occur in multiple sports, these leagues respectively have changed rules/protocols to better the safety of their athletes and so the youth levels have followed suit. We do hope you enjoy this episode and walk away feeling more enlightened about the rule changes which have been made, so sit back and enjoy this edition of The Safety Goals Podcast.

All music in this episode is courtesy of https://⁠www.bensound.com⁠/ 

Visit us at ⁠https://www.injurefree.com/⁠

On this week’s episode of The Safety Goals Podcast, we have Nate Dalena. Nate is the Executive Director of Rugby NorCal Inc. while also maintaining a role as an insurance broker. In this episode, we discuss how Nate and all the members of Rugby NorCal are working to provide a safe space for youth athletes to grow themselves, along with their passion for the sport. Being a former Rugby athlete himself had led Nate to have a great understanding of the game, as well as, a great understanding of how to best protect athletes in the sport. 

We will also be covering what Nate has learned about the world of youth rugby since joining as an Executive Director and how his perspective has shifted since his playing days in college at St. Mary’s College of California. On top of all that, Nate is now a father to his son who he hopes will one day follow in his footsteps of playing rugby, but also how he is working to create an environment that is safe for kids like his son to enjoy and grow up in. With all that being said, we have an amazing episode with a great guest, so we hope you enjoy listening to our conversation with Nate Dalena of Rugby NorCal.

All music in this episode is courtesy of https://⁠www.bensound.com⁠/ 

Visit us at ⁠https://www.injurefree.com/⁠

On this week’s episode of The Safety Goals Podcast, we have Josh Opiola who is the Senior Vice President of Business Development at InjureFree. In this episode, we discuss the importance of protecting youth athletes from abusive behavior, as well as how abuse prevention has progressed in recent years. Josh speaks on the importance of background checks and how having them completed can drastically increase the safety of youth athletes. 

Beyond his awareness for athlete protection Josh has a keen understanding of sales and he goes over how building connections has helped him be able to increase athlete safety. We also go over what attracted him to sports in the first place and how he sees his passion for sports in his own children. This is a great episode with a great guest, so we hope you enjoy listening to our conversation with Josh Opiola.

All music in this episode is courtesy of https://⁠www.bensound.com⁠/ 

Visit us at ⁠https://www.injurefree.com/⁠

On this Episode of The Safety Goals Podcast we have Executive Director of Jacksonville Sports Medicine Program (JSMP), Bob Sefcik joining us. Bob has worked in the athletic trainer space for quite sometime now and has been able to lead one of the pioneering programs in the country. JSMP works to place and manage AT’s throughout the state of Florida and in their time working with the state have opened eyes to how important AT’s in youth athletics can be. During our conversation we dive into how JSMP operates and what makes them different from other AT outreach groups.

Leaning on an AT in youth sports should be widely accepted just like how they are in the JSMP practice. Having an AT on the scene for any youth sporting event should be mandated, however, the lack of AT’s has become a problem. Bob hopes to show the amazing opportunities being an AT can provide, along with showing just how integral they have been to the mission of keeping Florida’s youth athletes safe and healthy.

All music in this episode is courtesy of https://⁠www.bensound.com⁠/ 

Visit us at ⁠https://www.injurefree.com/⁠

Welcome to this edition of Safety Goals Podcast, where we have Jerry Stevens, LAT, ATC, who is an extremely well-respected individual in the world of Athletic Trainers’ (AT), as well as, the man behind Duval County Schools rapid advancement in AT integration. In this episode, we shed light on the world of AT’s, Duval County Schools, along with what Jerry Stevens is doing to revolutionize the way people receive medical assessments and treatments in Jacksonville’s youth sports market. 

We will be taking a look at how the relationship between school staff and AT’s have changed over the years, as well as how Project 17 which was an initiative to place AT’s in 17 schools around Duval County helped further increase the awareness of how important AT’s can be. So listen and enjoy everything Charlie, Jerry, and myself had to say on the importance of having an AT around.

Episode Contents:

0:00 - Intro

1:13 - Who is Jerry Stevens, ATC, LAT

6:02 - Building a community of Athletic Trainers (AT’s) 

11:37 - Why non medical personnel should be in communication with an AT

14:45 - Sponsored Ad

15:34 - How the relationship between AT and coach has changed 

17:42 - What Jerry learned about integrating AT’s

21:53 - Sponsored Ad

22:35 -  What makes Duval County School’s unique with regards to AT care

27:00 - Difficulties AT’s can face

28:00 - Which path is more likely for the future of AT’s

30:40 - Not enough AT’s to go around and have we seen a change in the acceptance of AT’s

33:11 - How community partners keep Duval’s AT’s going  

39:55 - The difference between ATC and LAT and how these credentials are attained

45:41 - Advice Jerry has learned and likes to instill upon others

48:13 - What role data plays in an AT’s job

53:48 - Sponsored Ad

54:53 - What’s one thing Jerry wants for the future of AT’s

56:49 - Outro

All music in this episode is courtesy of https://⁠www.bensound.com⁠/ 

Visit us at ⁠https://www.injurefree.com/⁠

In this impromptu episode of The Safety Goals Podcast, Charlie and I breakdown the importance of being prepared for sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) in light of the most recent report that Bronny James suffered an incident Tuesday morning during a University of Southern California Basketball team practice. 

SCA is the result of a structural or electrical disorder in the heart that can lead to a potentially lethal arrhythmia. Damar Hamlin suffered SCA on Jan 2, 2023 which goes to show this was a topic long before that incident, however, having 23.8 million viewers see it happen live on Monday Night Football is what truly released the flood gates. 

Now just 7 months later the sports world was once again rocked with the news that Bronny James (also known as LeBron James Jr.), son of NBA player LeBron James, suffered from sudden cardiac arrest earlier this morning (Tuesday July 25th, 2023). 

Bronny was in a USC practice when he collapsed and was rushed to a nearby hospital. It has come out since “James is out of the Intensive Care Unit and is listed in stable condition”, his parents shared in a statement to the media.

All music in this episode is courtesy of https://⁠www.bensound.com⁠/ 

Visit us at ⁠https://www.injurefree.com/⁠