News

Many times our jobs as athletic trainers are touted as being a “behind the scenes” type job. One in which our athletes/patients shine while we smile brightly on the sidelines. Very rarely do we get recognition for our daily accolades, but that’s ok. That isn’t why we do what we do. We are athletic trainers because we enjoy helping keep our patients healthy and on the field– the court, the stage what have you. But then there are those times where someone goes out of their way to thank you for taking the time to really care for them. I would like to highlight a recent story I came across about just that.

Wyatt Blue MS, ATC, CSCS is a District 8 athletic trainer, currently residing in California. During a USA Volleyball camp this summer (2014) a young athlete approached him for some ice for her sore back. As any good athletic trainer would do, he asked a few questions before just wrapping her up. Wyatt had some suspicions about the nature of this athlete’s injury and suggested to this athlete and her parents that further evaluation by an orthopedic may be necessary.

“I was contacted 2 months after the event by USA Volleyball staff sharing a thank you message from the athlete’s father confirming my suspicion of a Spondylosis, and letting me know that she had been undergoing physical therapy for about 2 months and is nearly pain free. The father thanked me for taking the extra step to fully evaluate his daughter and let me know that she would be ready to play in her upcoming club volleyball season.”

In situations where we work camps or tournaments, we often don’t know the outcome of our assessment, and hope the athlete recovers well and successfully returns to his/her sport. While our job doesn’t normally put the spotlight on us, and we are ok with that, because we aren’t in it for the fame, it’s moments like these that remind us how far a simple thank you can go and makes us feel so proud to call ourselves athletic trainers.

Courtesy of Jeanne “Coby” Vandenberg, Nevada ATA PR Chair