USA Wrestling is joining forces with the National Center for Sports Safety (NCSS) to encourage its members to take PREPARE, an online sports safety course that has also been approved for the Gold and Silver levels of the coaches education program.    According to the American College of Sports Medicine, more than 775,000 children under age 14 are treated in emergency rooms each year for sports-related injuries and nearly half of these injuries were preventable. To combat statistics such as this, and to raise the national standards of coaches responsible for the safety and well-being of millions of young athletes, NCSS, in conjunction with the National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA), developed PREPARE, an online sports safety course. This course is targeted at all individuals working with youth athletes to provide them with the basic sports safety education they need.    "USA Wrestling is highly impressed with the program and services that new NCSS PREPARE Online Sports Safety course brings to its membership", said USAW Director of State Services.  "The new course program is a tool that all our member clubs and coaches can utilize to educate themselves on the various aspects of sports safety. The course is comprehensive and covers a vast array of sport safety situations and issues related to youth wrestling programs", Scott said.  Scott concluded by saying, "This new program service is an outstanding addition to USA Wrestling's already highly successful National Coaches Education Program and well worth the cost of completing the course work for continued education." Mark A. Scott, Director of State Services.    PREPARE covers everything from minor injuries, like blisters, nose bleeds and ankle sprains, to life-threatening situations such as head and neck injuries. USA Wrestling, in conjunction with NCSS, if offering the course through it's website at www.themat.com. The three hour course is available at a cost of $28 and the flexibility of online learning allows the participant to complete the course at their own pace. After completing the course, each participant will receive a sports safety patch and a certificate of completion.    The PREPARE course covers seven topics:  * Emergency Plan  * Heat and Cold Illnesses  * Emergency Recognition  * Medical Considerations  * Principles of First Aid  * Head, Neck and Facial Injuries  * Warm-Up and Cool-Down    "We believe parents with active children will be heartened to know that PREPARE exists," says Lawrence J. Lemak, M.D., founder of the NCSS. "There is not one parent that would drop their child off at a community pool that did not have a certified lifeguard on duty, and that same standard of care should apply to every sports facility in this country."  PREPARE will provide coaches and parents with the knowledge to appropriately respond in an emergency situation until professional help arrives.