Thank you, Mr. Chair and honourable members. We appreciate the opportunity to address the subcommittee today. We would like to express our support for your work in studying sports-related concussions.
My name is Nancy Bestic, and I am Director of Health and Safety Standards at Canadian Standards Association, operating as CSA Group. With me is a CSA Group volunteer member, Dr. Patrick Bishop. Dr. Bishop, a professor emeritus at the University of Waterloo, serves as chair of the CSA technical committee on equipment for ice hockey. He will provide his own perspectives on the topic of concussions, not necessarily those of CSA Group.
In our remarks, we would like to highlight the following key points. First, we will provide some background on CSA Group. Second, we will summarize our activities regarding protective sport equipment and the concern for concussion intervention. Finally, we will identify some future concerns and offer recommendations that may help guide this subcommittee's work.
CSA Group was established 100 years ago, in 1919, and it continues to be Canada's largest accredited standards development organization. We're a member-based association serving business, government and consumers with over 3,000 published standards and codes in more than 50 subject areas, including health care and well-being, public safety and worker safety. Our mission is to enhance the lives of Canadians through the advancement of standards in the public and private sectors. The technical and management standards developed with our 10,000 members help improve safety, health, the environment and economic efficiency in Canada and beyond.
Specifically related to sport and injury prevention, CSA has developed standards since the 1970s to help protect against head and face injury for hockey and other sports, such as lacrosse, ringette, skiing and snowboarding. A series of four standards address helmets and face protectors for their ability to withstand impact trauma to the head, to fit properly, to avoid penetration by pucks and sticks, and to stay on the head during play. These standards, which are systematically reviewed and updated, are referenced in Canadian legislation. Hockey Canada has mandated the use of helmets and face protectors certified to the CSA standards for use in hockey under its jurisdiction. Such certified products have been most successful in reducing the risk of catastrophic head injury and reducing eye injuries. We are now revisiting the helmet standard to address the concussion issue—more specifically, to determine whether we can find a way to help mitigate the problem.