How to Educate Learners to Manipulate Equipment in Trauma (HELMET): An Educational Workshop on Football Equipment Removal in Trauma Care

Introduction: American football carries a risk of traumatic injuries, including spinal cord injury (SCI). Proper management of suspected spinal injury in athletes, including safe equipment removal, is essential to prevent secondary injury. Emergency medicine (EM) physicians may encounter these scenarios, but often have limited formal training. This study evaluates EM residents’ prior training on this and assesses changes in self-reported confidence and comfort following a targeted educational intervention on football equipment removal. Methods: We conducted a single-center, pre-post quasi-experimental study among EM residents at a three-year residency program. Participants completed a pre-intervention survey assessing prior exposure and confidence. They then underwent a brief educational intervention consisting of a video and a hands-on workshop on football equipment removal. A post-intervention survey measured changes in confidence and comfort using a 5-point Likert scale. Paired responses were analyzed using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Results: Of 76 eligible residents, 29 participated and 23 completed both surveys (n=23/29, 79% completion rate). Most participants reported having minimal prior training or lecture on this topic (n=23/28, 82%). Following the intervention, there were statistically significant improvements in self-reported confidence across all domains, including timing of removal, cervical spine stabilization, airway access, and equipment removal (p < 0.001). Self-reported comfort in managing these trauma scenarios also improved (p < 0.001). Conclusions: EM residents reported limited prior exposure to managing and treating suspected spine-injured athletes during residency training. A brief, simulation-based workshop significantly improved self-reported confidence and comfort in removing football equipment and may help address gaps in training for high-risk but infrequent clinical scenarios.