Safe Sports School: What Does It Really Mean?

The National Athletic Trainers’ Association introduced the Safe Sports School award in an attempt to recognize outstanding athletic training programs in secondary schools. There are two distinctions that schools can qualify for: 1^st Team and 2^nd Team.

Take One Minute

Take One Minute. 60 seconds. It’s not long. But in that 60 seconds you can watch the story of how a young athlete’s life was saved. 60 seconds is very important in this story, because 60 seconds is longer than the time it took for Claire Crawford to collapse on the volleyball court, the Athletic Trainer and staff to respond, and for CPR to be initiated. Can you believe all of that happened in 56 seconds?

Has “Professionalism” Gone Too Far In Healthcare?

I asked this question tonight on Twitter. “Healthcare people, think about this: who do patients tend to like better… The doctors or the nurses? Why??”

What do you think that answer is? Who is it that patients and their families often comment positively about? My guess it’s not the doctor.

Humans, Not Electronics, Detect Concussions

There has been so much press about many different helmet sensors coming onto the market. Or computer testing such as ImPACT. While these tools can be great, they still cannot detect concussions. They can provide great data and it’s data we should use. But humans still must detect and diagnose concussions. This is why the value of having a Certified Athletic Trainer is so great. Do your kids a favor; make sure they are protected by a Certified Athletic Trainer.

Every Athlete Deserves an Athletic Trainer #AT4ALL

Who I am and What I do

People call me crazy (I am). People call me nuts (I am). People ask me all the time why I do what I do? Each day I have an opportunity to educate. Educate a healthcare provider about what an Athletic Trainer is. Educate a parent or a student-athlete about their injury. Educate the public about concussions. Hopefully each day I take that opportunity to educate with a positive attitude. I am an Athletic Trainer. It’s what I am passionate about. I love to spread the word. I hope your student-athlete never needs me on their darkest day, but know that if that shall come, I’ll be there. I’ll be there to manage the injury from start to finish. Because that’s what Athletic Trainers do. Each and Every Day.

Every Athlete Deserves an Athletic Trainer. #AT4ALL

2013 in Review on the Blog

Here we are closing in all on the end of the 2013 year! Can you believe it’s here already? As we prepare to look forward to 2014, I’m going to take a couple of minutes to look back at 2013 here at Athletic Training and Fitness.

Why

I don’t know if becoming a grad student made me this way or if I became a grad student because I am this way. But I’ve realized as I continue my pursuit to complete my graduate degree and I pursue making myself a better clinician and better professional, the question I keep asking: Why?

Why Just Football?

On this blog, I’ve made it a habit to talk about other sports. I love football and many of you I’m sure are aware of that! But football is always in the spotlight and when it comes to injuries, there’s no getting out of the spotlight for the game of football. But football is not the only sport for which there is serious risk of serious injury. Why, then is there so much emphasis on safety in football and not other sports?

CPTA AB864 Fact Sheet–Where are the Facts?

Silly me, I thought a “fact sheet” was supposed to contain facts. But the so-called “fact sheet” that the California Physical Therapy Association posted on its website is full of mistruths and opinions. Let’s address a few of them right now!

• The CPTA says that the current laws “protect athetes by the regulation of various professionals and vocations who serve the athletic population.” Umm.. which one of those professionals who are regulated are athletic healthcare specialists? Oh wait, NONE of them.

Excellent thoughts!

wantzatc

Athletic trainers have fought for years to be recognized and have the approriate regulations in place to protect the public. Hard work has gone into making sure that it accurately reflects what we do for the public.

Let’s remember and remind people that we do athletic training. Within that is a number of things. We do injury prevention, diagnosis, injury management and treatment, rehabilitation, administration and professional development. What do we not do?

We do not do medicine. We work under a physician and we are in the sports medicine field. We are not board certified. We ARE certified by the Board of Certification. We are not performing physical therapy. We are very skilled at performing rehabilitation. We are not water boys/girls. We do promote the benefits of hydration and other ways to prevent heat illness. We are not equipment managers, but we are skilled at fitting equipment properly and…

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