Athletic Trainers For Everyone!

It's a fact:  Having an athletic trainer at athletic practices and games improves the medical care athletes receive.

While our InjureFree software is currently gathering statistical data to support this concept, let’s discuss the empirical evidence.

#1 - ATs are considered health care providers.  Similar to a school nurse, ATs are educated and trained to identify and treat athletic related injuries.  The medical field created this profession to specifically address athletic injuries, it makes sense putting them to work. Neither coaches, nor parents, nor officials are sufficiently qualified.

#2 - Certified ATs, or ATCs, need to complete continuing education credits to maintain their credential.   They are continually studying the latest methods, policies and technologies for athletic injury management.  In an environment of part-time coaches, parent volunteers, and per diem officials, ATs are uniquely suited to manage a huge range of injury care issues, from on-field assessment/treatment, to state and federal regulatory compliance, to overall risk management coordination.

#3 - ATs are teachers too.  While coaches help athletes improve their athletic skills, ATs help athletes learn about their bodies and proper maintenance of these incredible machines, lessons that prevent injury and allow informed participation.  For young athletes, accessing the right information and applying it correctly is an important part of the developmental process.

So how do teams pay for this vital service?

While a full-time high school AT costs $35,000 - $60,000/yr, hourly rates can be as low as $25/hr.  Services like ATvantage provide athletic trainers to high schools and youth sports teams for season long coverage for $8,000 - $15,000.

Consider this.  A youth football season (including 10 hr/wk practice, 8 hr Saturday game coverage, over 14 weeks) would require ~250 hrs of AT service.  At $50/hr… coverage would cost $12,500.  If a youth football club has 500 athletes, that’s $25 per player.  Less than a single doctor’s office copay!  

So how do you approach administrators to make your pitch?

In addition to what we’ve discussed, when proposing to increase spending, it helps having numbers to inform decisions and support necessary changes.  Take a look at the graphic below.

The infographic displays statistics collected during a case study completed within a single 2,200 student high school.  Using our InjureFree web-based software, 80 athletic related injuries were reported by the athletic trainer during the entire school year.  Of those 80 injuries, 27 required additional medical services.  When national averages (for medical services) were applied, the resulting price tag was $102,950.

Who paid that bill?  

The parents of the student athletes, the family’s insurance providers, and the school's insurance policy.  Since this was a public school, local taxpayers contributed as well.

The school in this case study employed an athletic trainer.   Imagine the bill had athletes visited doctors instead of the AT.  If parents aren't convinced an athletic trainer is a sound investment, check back in a few months and we'll have a statistical comparison of injury rates for teams with and without an AT.