Evolving world of athletic training
LIMA — On the sidelines of high school football games and college tournaments, Kris Laise and Erica Anderson are on standby.
Both athletic trainers for Mercy Health’s sports medicine program, Laise and Anderson work in 17 high schools and two universities — the University of Northwestern Ohio and Ohio Northern University — tending to torn ACLs, sprained ankles and other injuries that occur during athletic seasons.
They provide in-house rehabilitation for athletes recovering from an injury. And when more serious injuries occur, they provide referrals to physicians, cardiologists and physical therapists.
But because the field is still so young, Laise said there are often misunderstandings. So, he has crafted his own definition.
“I always say that we’re the primary health care provider for athletes,” Laise said. “We’re the ones that tend to see them first. … Do (they) need to go to a doctor? Do they need to go to an orthopedist? Do they need to go to a psychologist? Do they need a cardiologist?”
Whereas athletic trainers were once isolated to basic treatments like taping and icing athletes, Laise said trainers are now responsible for everything from educating athletes on stretching and injury prevention to evaluating injuries.
Those quick decisions are what has kept Laise in the profession for 30 years.
He often asks: Is this an injury that can wait a few days before the student is seen by a specialist, or does it need to be checked out immediately?
“At the professional level, they get an MRI within an hour. That’s not available to everybody,” Laise said.
While Mercy Health athletic trainers like Laise and Anderson spend most of their time working with high school and college athletes, Anderson said the trainers have started to provide coverage to community events, starting with a triathlon last year — an opportunity that may expand to 5Ks and other events in the future.
“We were on site so if an event did happen, we can help step in to offer first aid until EMS could arrive,” Anderson said.
To Anderson, the need to redefine athletic training is rooted in the confusion over what trainers do.
“If you say a nurse,” she said, “you know what a nurse does. But if you just say trainer … a lot of times people’s minds go to somebody who’s a personal trainer, someone who does body building, fitness training. That’s not what we are.”
Mercy Health athletic trainers Erica Anderson, left, and Kris Laise, right, work in 17 local high schools and two universities, evaluating injuries, referring students to physicians and providing in-house rehabilitation when needed.
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