Athletic Trainers
"The moment they told me he'd lost consciousness and had a heart attack, I left my seat in the stands and ran toward him. There I saw Mr. David Silverstein with his hands on his chest, performing CPR on him, and he told me my son Zaharyus had suddenly collapsed among his teammates in the locker room and his pulse had stopped." That's how American Nashima Anderson described what happened to her 17-year-old son, a basketball player who suffered sudden cardiac arrest during one of his team's games in 2021. In an interview with a media outlet, she said that after her son was saved by Mr. Silverstein, the healthcare specialist for the basketball team he was part of, he was rushed immediately to a hospital, where doctors discovered he had a congenital heart defect, and that had it not been for the precise, immediate CPR he received, he would have lost his life. Various sports teams affiliated with clubs, schools, and universities employ a sports trainer specialized in healthcare, responsible for the players' health condition. Their main task is preventing the injuries and illnesses athletes face across all sports — whether football, basketball, swimming, running, boxing, tennis, or others. If a player gets injured, the trainer explains the causes of the injury to them, helps them heal and recover from it, and prepares them to return to play. They're also tasked with responding immediately to emergencies athletes may face, such as heart attacks or a swallowed tongue. In the lines ahead, you'll learn in more detail about the responsibilities of the sports trainer specialized in healthcare across different sports teams and clubs.
Meet the Writer: Waleed Abo Omiraa
What You'll Actually Do
The core tasks and responsibilities that fill a typical day.
- Conduct an initial assessment of an athlete's injury or illness to provide emergency or continued care and to determine whether they should be referred to physicians for definitive diagnosis and treatment.
- Care for athletic injuries, using physical therapy equipment, techniques, or medication.
- Evaluate athletes' readiness to play and provide participation clearances when necessary and warranted.
- Apply protective or injury preventive devices, such as tape, bandages, or braces, to body parts, such as ankles, fingers, or wrists.
- Assess and report the progress of recovering athletes to coaches or physicians.
- Collaborate with physicians to develop and implement comprehensive rehabilitation programs for athletic injuries.
- Advise athletes on the proper use of equipment.
- Plan or implement comprehensive athletic injury or illness prevention programs.
- Develop training programs or routines designed to improve athletic performance.
- Travel with athletic teams to be available at sporting events.
- Instruct coaches, athletes, parents, medical personnel, or community members in the care and prevention of athletic injuries.
- Inspect playing fields to locate any items that could injure players.
- Conduct research or provide instruction on subject matter related to athletic training or sports medicine.
- Recommend special diets to improve athletes' health, increase their stamina, or alter their weight.
- Massage body parts to relieve soreness, strains, or bruises.
- Confer with coaches to select protective equipment.
- Accompany injured athletes to hospitals.
- Lead stretching exercises for team members prior to games or practices.
- Perform general administrative tasks, such as keeping records or writing reports.
- Clean and sanitize athletic training rooms.