HISTORY
The Role of
Athletic Trainers
What is Sports Medicine?
GOALS
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Know who we are & what we do
Know what areas we work in
Know the sports medicine team
What is Sports Medicine?
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The areas of specialization under the
umbrella of Sports Medicine is
broken into two parts – Performance
Enhancement and Injury Care and
Management.
What is Sports Medicine?
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Performance enhancement
• Exercise Physiology
• Biomechanics
• Sports Psychology
• Sports Nutrition
• Strength and Conditioning
• Coaching
• Personal Fitness Trainers
Sports Medicine
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Injury Care and Management
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Practice of Medicine (physician)
Athletic Training
Sports Physical Therapy
Sports Massage Therapy
Sports Dentistry
Osteopathic Medicine
Orthotists/Prosthetists
Sports Chiropractic
Sports Podiatry
What is Sports Medicine?
What is Athletic Training?
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NATA – founded in 1950
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Governing board
Recognizing the need for a set of professional
standards and appropriate professional recognition,
the NATA has helped to unify certified athletic trainers
across the country by setting a standard for
professionalism, education, certification, research and
practice settings.
The NATA is headquartered in Indianapolis, IN. The
association has expanded to encompass a global
membership totaling over 32,000 and 25 countries.
Advisory Board of Athletic Trainers
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Texas governing board
http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/at/default.shtm
What is Sports Medicine?
Other Organizations:
Recognized by the AMA (American Medical Assoc.)
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ACSM – American College of Sports Medicine
AOSSM – American Orthopaedic Society for
Sports Medicine
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APTA – American Physical Therapy Association
NSCA – National Strength and Conditioning
Association
Athletic Training job market
Job Market –
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Secondary Schools
College/Universities
Olympic sports – winter &
Summer
Professional sports
- Football, Basketball, Baseball,
Hockey, Soccer
- NASCAR, X Games,
- Golf, Tennis, Rodeo
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Clinics
- PT and Physician extenders
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Industrial/corporate settings
Military
Department of Homeland
Security
Performing Arts
Board Certification Domains of
Athletic Training
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In 2004 the Board of Certification –
which covers many health fields finished a role delineation study that
identified six roles that the athletic
trainer covers.
Board Certification Domains of
Athletic Training
6 Performance domains of athletic
training
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4.
5.
6.
Prevention of athletic injuries
Clinical evaluation and assessment
Immediate Care
Treatment, rehabilitation, and reconditioning
Organization and administration
Professional development and responsibility
Domain 1:
Prevention
• Physical exams
• Developing training and conditioning
programs
• Ensuring safe environment,
• Selecting/fitting/maintaining protective
equipment
• Consulting and guidance with diet and
lifestyle choices
• using medications appropriately.
Domain 2:
Clinical Evaluation & Diagnosis
• Evaluation
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Medical history
Observation
Palpation
ROM and strength test
Special tests, joint stability tests
• Understanding the pathology of injury and
illness
• referral to appropriate medical care
• Referring to support services
Domain 3:
Immediate Care
• Responsible for on-field evaluation
• Must have sound skills for initial
recognition of potential serious
injuries and/or illnesses
• Responsible for correct decision for
proper acute injury management
• Must have skills to take care of
emergency care
Domain 4:
Treatment, Rehabilitation, and
Reconditioning
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Designing rehabilitation programs
• Must have sound knowledge in anatomy to help evaluate
the injury correctly and build the proper program.
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Supervising rehabilitation programs
• Must have a very good understanding of the healing
process of the many tissues in the body.
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Incorporating therapeutic modalities
Offering psychosocial intervention
• Must have a good understanding of psychology
• Athletes go through a wide range of emotions during
and after an injury.
• Athletes have different pain thresholds, cooperation,
motivations
Domain 5:
Organization & Administration
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Record keeping
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Pre-participation physicals and Emergency cards
Injury reports
Treatment and Rehabilitation reports
Insurance
Ordering supplies and equipment
Supervising assistants and students
Establishing policies
• Student athletic trainer policies
• Day to day operations
• Emergency management
Domain 6:
Professional responsibilities
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Continuing education
• Always learning – never know enough
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Counselor
• Informing parents of injuries
• Prevention education
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Researcher
• Research helps us do our job better – many colleges hire
athletic trainers to do research.
• Most if not all decisions we make for our athletes is done
off evidence-based medicine
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We have supported literature to help base our decisions
Qualities an AT must possess
- stamina
difficult job
- long hours
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- ability to adapt
- practice schedules, game changes
- environment
- empathy
- the capacity to enter into the feeling or spirit of
another person.
- sense of humor
- helps lighten mood in tense situations
- help relieve stress
- ranked most important by patients
- ability to communicate
- good communication skills key in dealing with many types of entities – parents,
coaches, administrators, athletes
- intellectual curiosity
- always learning – there is always something new out there or a better way to
do something
- ethics
- must always act with the highest standards
The Sports Medicine Team
School nurse
Cardiologist
Urologist
Coach
Team Dentist
Allergist
Athletic
Trainer
Neurologist
Registered Dietitian
Physical Therapist
Athlete
Equipment Manager
Team Physician
Primary Care Physician
Chiropractor
Podiatrist
Parent
Student Trainer
Urologist
National Athletic Training
Certification - Requirements
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College students must enter a
program that is CAATE certified.
• 18 programs in Texas (16
undergraduate, 2 entry-level
master)
• TCU, UTA, UT, TTU, Baylor, Texas
State to name a few
• Website for CAATE
http://www.caate.net/
CAATE programs
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12 area that you will master by the time you
graduate
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Risk management and injury prevention
Pathology of injuries and illnesses
Orthopedic clinical examination and diagnoses
Medical conditions and disabilities
Acute care of injuries and illnesses
Therapeutic modalities
Conditioning and rehabilitative exercise
Pharmacology
Psychosocial intervention and referral
Nutritional aspects of injuries and illnesses
Health care administration
Professional development and responsibility
Certification
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Complete CAATE program
Proof of graduation from school
Endorsement from CAATE program
CPR/first aid certified
Pass certification test
State Licensure
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45 states have some type of licensure,
registration, certification at the state level to
protect athletic trainers.
• 32 states have licensure
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Licensure the most restrictive (which is good)
For licensure you must meet a minimum level of
requirements to work in the state or you cannot
practice as an athletic trainer
Some use there own test; some use the BOC test
• Texas has there own test
• Passing test does not allow you to work outside the
state of Texas
Review/Clinical application
exercises
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An athletic trainer has taken a job working in a
sports medicine clinic that has four physical
therapists and two PTA’s. The clinic has never
employed an AT before, and there is uncertainty
among the PT’s as to exactly the role the athletic
trainer will play in the function of the clinic
How does the role of the athletic trainer working
in a clinic differ from the responsibilities of the
athletic trainer working in a university or
secondary setting?
Clinical application exercise #2
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A high school is looking into hiring there
first athletic trainer. However the
administrators do not completely
understand why an athletic trainer may be
more beneficial for their athletes than an
EMT.
What reasons should the local athletic
trainers use to persuade the
administrators to hire one at their school?
Clinical application exercise #3
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A basketball player suffers a grade 2 ankle
sprain – after 3 weeks of rehab most of
the pain and swelling has been eliminated.
The athlete is anxious to get back and
subsequent injuries to teammates have
placed pressure on the coach to want the
player back quickly. Unfortunately the
player is still unable to perform basketball
skills, cutting and jumping.
Who is responsible for making the decision
regarding when the athlete can fully
return to practice and game situations?
Clinical application exercise #4
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A young athletic trainer has just taken their first
job at a high school, the school administrators
are concerned about the number of athletes who
get hurt playing various sports. They have
charged the athletic trainer with the task of
developing a program that can effectively help
prevent of injury to athletes in all sports at the
school.
What actions can the athletic trainer take to
reduce the number of injuries and to minimize
the risk of injury in competitive athletes at the
school?
Clinical application exercise #5
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A second semester college sophomore has
decided that she is interested in becoming
a certified athletic trainer. She happens
to attend a school that has an advanced
level athletic training but not a entry level
program.
How can this student effectively achieve
her goal of becoming a certified athletic
trainer?
Clinical application exercise #6
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A certified athletic trainer moves to a
different state to take a new job. She
discovers that in that state the ATC must
be licensed to practice athletic training.
Since she was registered as an athletic
trainer in the other state she wonders if
she must go through the process of
getting a license in her new state?