Lindsay's Law On Student Athlete Cardiac Arrest Takes Effect In Ohio Aug. 1

Ohio's student athletes, their parents and coaches, will need to become better informed on the risks of sudden cardiac arrest, thanks to new legislation set to go into effect on Aug. 1, 2017. The legislation, Lindsay's Law, dictates education prior to a player taking the field or court, training for coaches, and guidelines for recognizing and dealing with the symptoms of sudden cardiac arrest.

Students and their parents will need to watch a video on the dangers of cardiac arrest. They will then need to fill out a form saying information on cardiac arrest has been reviewed. The form can be found here. The form will need to be turned in on the first day of practice, before a student participates in any games or other activities. Signature forms can likely also be obtained in your district's athletic office.

Students and parents will also need to review a handout on sudden cardiac arrest. The required form can be found here.

The video students and their parents need to watch is embedded below.

Coaches will also have to gain additional training on how to recognize signs and symptoms of cardiac arrest and how best to respond. Primarily, that will mean watching an online video discussing early sudden cardiac arrest symptoms.

Coaches will also need to review sudden cardiac arrest information. The Ohio Department of Health released a guide that coaches need to review. That guide is linked here.

The video coaches need to watch is embedded below.

History of Lindsay's Law

Lindsay Davis was a ballet dancer from Lakewood, Ohio. When she was in high school, she was dancing seven days a week. Her whole life was wrapped up in dance, she says in a video interview with Boston General. Then she started experiencing strange episodes — fainting, uncontrollable heart beating. Finally, she collapsed after a practice and was taken to a doctor.

She was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a possibly fatal heart condition. She was forced to give up dance.

Instead, of wallowing, she got active.

She's gone on to a successful career as a model (becoming Miss Ohio in 2010) and activist, advocating for better awareness of diseases and conditions leading to sudden cardiac arrest, one of the leading causes of death for student athletes.

She championed Senate Bill 252, now known as Lindsay's Law. Along with State Senator Cliff Hite, Republican from Findlay, Davis was able to get the bill passed into law on Aug. 28, 2016.

Hite, a former educator and football coach, felt the bill struck close to home.

"I just cannot imagine losing somebody because we haven't taken the time to learn more about this," said Hite in a statement. "As a former coach and educator I realized that if we raise awareness of this often-preventable condition lives could be saved."

Davis felt both the personal danger of sudden cardiac arrest and the big picture.

"Sudden cardiac arrest is the number one killer of student athletes," said Davis in a press release after the bill's passing. "At any moment I could have died because coaches and teachers had no idea this was even a possibility for someone who looked as healthy as I did at that age."

Davis discussed her history with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in the video below.