Quality assessment of athletic trainers

Abstract

This paper reports the first published assessment of the quality of services provided by athletic trainers. Medical coverage for the 1985 Junior Olympic Games was provided by certified athletic trainers (ATC), physicians, and other health care personnel. This study assessed the services of the 30 attending ATCs who managed 121 significant injuries. Standard injury information was collected by the ATCs and separately collected by their physicians. Nine months after the Games, phone interviews were conducted with the injured participants and assessment questionnaires were given to the attending physicians. Results revealed that young, injured, Junior Olympic participants generally did not inform their parents about their injuries or medical contact while at the Games. Athletes and physicians overwhelmingly agreed that they were positively impressed with the capabilities of the ATCs with whom they had contact. About 70% recovered from the symptoms and limitations of injury, as determined by the athlete, within the month following the Games. About 17% sustained some type of injury recurrence to the same body part, and at 9 months about 97% of the athletes had fully recovered from their injuries. These data not only indicate that athletic trainers can accurately identify minor athletic injury but signify the importance of long-term followup in our athletic populations. Multisport events, such as the Junior Olympic Games, impose considerable problems to a communication effort. The athletic trainer, as an ever-present figure in collegiate and professional circles, can be the central focus of an adequate communication effort regarding the patient care of other athletic populations.