Athletic Training Awareness

I was forwarded a link by Heather a week or so ago about an article where Athletic Training was discussed in the media. Here is my attempt at educating the public:

Athletic Training:
Athletic Training is an Allied Health Profession that is requires the knowledge and expertise in multiple disciplines. Athletic Trainers are charged with the goals to Educate, Prevent, Evaluate, Rehabilitate and Facilitate Medical care for physically active people. Athletic Trainers work in numerous settings ranging from High Schools, Sports Medicine Clinics, Colleges/Universities, Professional Sports, Olympic Teams, Hospitals, and many other. Our number one concern is the health and well being of our patients. All Athletic Trainers are currently required to have graduated from an accredited four year college or
university or an entry level graduate program enabling them to sit for the National Certification Exam. Undergraduate Cirriculums encompass courses including Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Anatomy, Physiology, Kinesiology, Exercise Physiology, Sports Psychology, Orthopaedic Evaluation, Therapeutic Modalities, Therapeutic Exercise, Legal Issues, CPR/AED/Advanced
First Aid, as well as clinical hours at on campus and off campus locations such as local high schools, sports medicine clinics, and junior colleges.
The National Certification exam is composed of three parts; a written simulation, written exam, and an oral
practical. The written simulation takes the examinee through a series of situations assessing decision making abilities and knowledge of appropriate courses of action. The written exam assess the examinees breadth of knowledge. The oral practical portion of the exam requires the examinee to physically demonstrate specific skills required from all Athletic Trainers. One must pass all three portions of the exam to be a nationally certified athletic trainer. Although a Masters degree is not required to practice as an Athletic Trainer it is highly reccommended and is increasingly becoming the standard level of
education for all practicing Athletic Trainers. My program coordinator always told us that Athletic Trainers are "Jacks of all trades and Masters of none" and to one extent I do believe that she was right in that Athletic Trainers have a lot of skills at our disposal, but at the same time I believe that we all in one way or another are able to specialize in certain skills.

I know for the majority of you who may read this already know what an Athletic Trainer is and or does, but in the off chance a random blog reader comes across this I hope that you feel that you are more knowledgeable about the profession of Athletic Training.