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 Private institutions were even less likely than public schools to
provide athletic training services or employ trainers, researchers
found.
"Athletic trainers really provide the knowledge, security, expertise
and education to keep athletes on the field and off the sidelines,"
said lead author Alicia Pike, of the Korey Stringer Institute at the
University of Connecticut in Storrs. "The students can really focus
on the benefits, and enjoyment of safe and fair play."
The researchers write in the Journal of Athletic Training that the
number of student athletes rose for the 25th consecutive year from
2013 to 2014. At that time, nearly 8 million students were athletes.
The American Medical Association and the National Athletic Trainers'
Association endorse the hiring of full-time and on-site athletic
trainers, they add. Research suggest schools that follow that
guidance have lower injury rates than those without athletic
trainers.
Athletic trainers work with physicians to provide a range of
healthcare services to student athletes ranging from minor bruises
to sudden cardiac arrest.
For the new study, Pike and colleagues surveyed 8,509 public and
2,044 private U.S. high schools between 2011 and 2014.
Overall, 70 percent of public schools and 58 percent of private
schools offered some level of athletic training services.
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Only 37 percent of public schools offered full-time athletic
training services, compared to only 28 percent of private schools.
Schools cited a number of barriers to hiring athletic trainers, Pike
said, including budget issues, school size, lack of awareness about
the role of athletic trainers and other school characteristics like
rural environments.
The researchers suggest that ways to overcome these barriers should
be explored.
Athletic trainers are a "vital aspect for the health and safety of
the student athlete," Pike said.
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/2m4gIBn Journal of Athletic Training, online
February 23, 2017.
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