Boulder Aikikai, Inc. is open to any person who safely can participate in our programs and activities regardless of race, color, national and ethnic origin, ancestry, creed, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender variance, marital status, and mental or physical disability, and all such persons will be afforded the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of any of the above in administration of its educational politics, athletics, or other school-administered programs.
Blood and Body Fluid Borne Pathogen Policy
To protect the Boulder Aikikai Inc. community against the risk of disease, Boulder Aikikai Inc. has adopted the following policy intended to minimize the risk of transmission of HIV, Hepatitis-B, and other Blood and Body Fluid Borne pathogens in the dojo. Current available evidence suggests that the risk of transmission of HIV during the type of body contact that occurs in aikido training is slight. Organizations such as the NCAA, the National Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Sports Medicine and the U.S. Olympic Committee have concluded that persons infected with blood and body fluid borne pathogens, particularly HIV, should not be barred from participating in contact sports. Certain federal and state anti-discrimination laws may also prohibit such a ban. These organizations have concluded that the already slight risk of transmission of HIV and other blood and body fluid borne diseases can be further reduced by adoption of the Centers for Disease Control’s recommended “universal precautions” with regard to exposed body fluids.
Boulder Aikikai observes these “universal precautions” as modified for aikido training. Generally, this means that instructors and all persons training at the Boulder Aikikai Inc. dojo shall treat all exposed bodily fluids as if they are infected. Specifically, the following measures will be observed at all times:
1. Preparation for Training
The most frequent points of contact between training partners are the hands. Other exposed parts of the body subject to particular risk of cuts and abrasions are the feet and the area about the face and neck. For these reasons the following procedures must be observed:
- Prior to aikido training you will inspect the exposed parts of your body for any breaks in your skin, abrasions, open cuts, or sores. If such exist, you’ll clean them with an antiseptic and cover them securely with a leak-proof dressing before coming on the training mat. You will make sure they stay covered securely by taping or by wearing gloves or tabi.
- You will inspect your hands and feet to ensure that fingernails and toenails are trimmed and smooth in order not to be a cause of cuts.
- You will remove all jewelry (watches, rings, necklaces, bracelets, earrings, etc.) before going onto the mat.
- You will wear a freshly laundered dogi to the first class you attend each day.
- You will never enter the training mat wearing a dogi, which is blood or body fluid stained to any degree.
- If you notice that someone else has an open cut or sore, you will immediately advise him/her of the fact and cease training with the individual until the appropriate covering is in place. If a person does not immediately remedy the situation, you will immediately notify the class instructor.
2. Procedures for Wounds Incurred During Training
If a wound becomes uncovered, open or is bleeding even to a minor extent, the person bleeding shall immediately leave the mat, stop the bleeding and securely cover the wound as described below. If the injured person needs assistance with this procedure, each person so assisting shall wear a pair of medical gloves (available at the dojo first aid tables). All used gloves and bloody materials will be placed in a leak-proof plastic bag and disposed of carefully. Hands shall be washed with soap and hot water immediately after gloves are removed. Minor bloodstains on dogi will be treated with a disinfectant solution available at the dojo first aid tables. If there are major bloodstains, the dogi shall be removed immediately, placed in a leak-proof container, and handled carefully until it can be laundered or disposed of. Students will not be allowed to return to the mat without inspection by and permission of the class instructor.
3. Procedures for Contact with Another’s Blood
If you come into contact with the blood of another, make an immediate attempt to locate and alert the individual who is the source of the bleeding, leave the mat, and follow Procedure 2. above.
4. Procedures for Blood on the Mat
If blood becomes present on the mat during training, the partner of the person bleeding will ensure that other students do not come into contact with the blood. The blood, regardless of amount, will be cleaned up immediately by wiping down the exposed surface with the disinfectant solution (available at first aid tables). Each person assisting in this task shall wear medical gloves from the dojo first aid tables, and shall dispose of the gloves and cloths used for cleanup, as in Procedure 2. above. Upon completion of the cleanup, each assisting person shall wash his/her hands with soap and hot water immediately after gloves are removed.
5. Responsibility for Health and Safety on the Mat
There are diseases and illnesses other than those known to be transmitted through blood and body fluids. You are responsible for not only your own health and safety, but also the health and safety of your training partners. If you know or suspect that you have any illness which might affect or infect others, or which might impair your ability to train safely, you have the obligation to refrain from training until you are not a risk to others.
Consent and Assumption of Risk Statement
1. I acknowledge that Boulder Aikikai Inc. carries no insurance against liability for injury to any of its students or persons present in the dojo. I agree that before using the mat or any equipment at the Boulder Aikikai Inc. dojo I will inspect the facilities and equipment I use, and if I believe anything is unsafe, I will immediately advise the instructor present and will refuse to participate in training any further.
2. I agree that I know and understand and will follow all safety procedures in using equipment and training weapons in the dojo. I agree that at no time will I bring steel swords or other non-training weapons to the dojo without the express written consent of the Boulder Aikikai Inc. chief instructor Mr. Hiroshi Ikeda. If there is any question as to what proper safety procedures are, I will specifically ask Mr. Ikeda or the instructor present at the dojo.
3. I have been advised not to attempt any skill level in training or any other activity of which I am not fully capable. I realize that the study of Aikido requires proper conditioning and training.
4. I fully understand that:
- There are risks and dangers associated with Aikido training including but not limited to bodily injury, communicable diseases, partial or total disability, paralysis and death. In accordance with the law, Boulder Aikikai Inc. does not exclude individuals with medical conditions that do not pose a medically recognized threat to the health or safety of other students in the normal course of training. I understand that there are some unavoidable circumstances where these conditions may require special caution on my part to minimize danger to myself or others, and I acknowledge that it is my responsibility to act accordingly.
In particular, I understand that some students may be infected with diseases such as HIV/AIDS or Hepatitis-B which can be transmitted by exchanges of blood or other body fluids and that I may be training with them. I acknowledge that I have read and will follow explicitly the Boulder Aikikai Inc. Blood- and Body Fluid-Borne Pathogen Policy, a copy of which is attached to and incorporated in this Release, Consent and Assumption of Risk Statement;
- There are social and economic losses and damages which could result from those risks and dangers described above which could be severe;
- These risks and dangers may be caused by my negligence, the negligence of my training partner, or the negligence of others around me who are training or doing any other activity, or by the negligence of the Boulder Aikikai Inc. dojo or other agents or instructors of Boulder Aikikai Inc.;
- There may be other risks not known or foreseeable at this time which could arise.
5. I EXPRESSLY AND VOLUNTARILY ASSUME ALL RISKS OF DEATH, ILLNESS, OR INJURY SUSTAINED WHILE PARTICIPATING IN OR OBSERVING, WHETHER OR NOT CAUSED BY THE NEGLIGENCE OF THE RELEASED PARTIES DESCRIBED IN 7. BELOW.
6. I accept and assume all such risk and responsibility for all losses and damages following any such injury, illness, disability, paralysis or death, however caused or alleged to be caused including injuries caused in whole or in part by the negligence of Boulder Aikikai Inc., its representatives, agents, employees, instructors, or other participants, or owners or lessees of the premises including their officers, directors, agents and employees.
7. I release Boulder Aikikai Inc., Mr. Hiroshi Ikeda, agents, instructors, employees of and all individuals associated with Boulder Aikikai Inc. from any and all liability, claims, demands or actions whatsoever arising out of the damage, loss or injury to me while upon the Boulder Aikikai Inc. premises or while participating in Aikido training or any other activities contemplated by this agreement, whether such loss, damage, or injury results from negligence or otherwise.
8. I agree that this Release, Consent and Assumption of Risk Statement covers each and every time that I train or otherwise participate in any activity, listed or unlisted, at the Boulder Aikikai Inc. dojo or at any other location sponsored by Boulder Aikikai Inc., its agents, employees or instructors.
9. I agree that I WILL NOT SUE OR MAKE A CLAIM AGAINST the released parties as the result of my participation at the Boulder Aikikai Inc. dojo or at any other location where training takes place.
10. I agree to INDEMNIFY AND HOLD HARMLESS THE RELEASED PARTIES from all claims, judgements, and costs including attorney’s fees incurred in connection with any action brought as a result of my participation in any activity at the Boulder Aikikai Inc. dojo.
11. I understand that Aikido is an educational system. I agree to strictly abide by the training rules of the Boulder Aikikai Inc. dojo and to follow explicitly all instructions given by instructors during the course of my training. I agree to watch out for others in the dojo and while training on the mat and to follow all the rules posted and otherwise explained to me. Should I break any of these rules, I understand that it is the decision of Mr. Ikeda whether or not I may continue training. I will abide by his decision.
12. In signing this agreement I am stating that I know what I am doing, that I take responsibility for my own acts, that I have read carefully and understand this agreement and that I fully agree with each statement contained in this agreement and that I am responsible for myself and will be considerate of others. I am aware that I may have the agreement reviewed by legal counsel.
13. I understand that this Release, Consent and Assumption of Risk Statement is in effect from the moment I arrive until the moment I leave the Boulder Aikikai Inc. dojo, even if I am not training when something happens.
14. I have read and understood, and agree to explicitly follow the Boulder Aikikai Inc. Blood- and Body Fluid-Borne Pathogen Policy which is attached and incorporated as if it is fully written out in the body thereof, to this Release, Consent and Assumption of Risk Statement.
15. If any portion of this agreement shall be held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable to any extent and for any reason by any Court of competent jurisdiction, the remainder of this agreement shall not be affected thereby and shall be enforceable to the full extent permitted by law.
Boulder Aikikai
