What is Athletic Training?

Have you ever wondered who are those people standing on the sidelines of a football or basketball game with the fanny pack and and always running out on the field or court for an injured athlete?  Well those people are Licensed Athletic Trainers and they do more work than most people realize. Athletic Trainers (ATs) are health care professionals who collaborate with physicians. The services provided by ATs comprise prevention, emergency care, clinical diagnosis, therapeutic intervention and rehabilitation of injuries and medical conditions. Athletic training is recognized by the American Medical Association (AMA) as a healthcare profession.

Athletic trainers can work in a variety of settings such as; professional and collegiate sports, secondary and intermediate schools, sports medicine clinics, hospital ER and rehab clinics, occupational settings, fitness centers, physician and chiropractic offices.

Students become eligible for BOC (Board of Certification) certification through an athletic training degree program (Bachelor’s or entry-level Master’s) accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE). Students engage in rigorous classroom study and clinical education in a variety of practice settings. Students enrolled in their final semester are eligible to apply for the BOC exam. Athletic trainers need a certain number of continuing education classes/credits every two years in order to  maintain licensure and those can be going to lectures, seminars, national meetings, online courses, etc.

For more information about athletic training go to www.bocatc.org or www.nata.org and don’t forget to thank your athletic trainers!