Free Response #3: Ankle Taping

In Kin 127 I learned to tape an ankle. The pictures I'm going to show you are also my handy work and you'll see that my taping isn't half bad due to a lot of time practicing it! (Pictures are below)

                                         

(The Ankle Wrap)

Ankle sprain is the most common sports injury in the United States. To keep the pressure off of the ankle they wrap it and prevent that much mobility. Depending on how bad the injury to the ankle is, the athlete can be even out for a few weeks until healed.

Beam, Joel. Orthopedic Taping, Wrapping, Bracing, & Padding. 2nd ed. F.A. Davis Company, 2011. 512. Print.

Week #3 Prompt: Exploring Writing Process

During this week I called my old Athletic Trainer from my old high school. I asked her a couple questions about her field and about the writing skills she needs in her profession. She was very generous and gave me way more then I needed to know. After our conversation on the phone I finally got an actual insight on what it means to be an Athletic Trainer and how exciting it is to get into. The questions are listed below.

1) Whats an average day for an Athletic Trainer?
The average day for her as an Athletic Trainer consists of starting at 3:15 p.m. and leaving around 9:30 p.m. (if not attending games). During the day she does a lot of taping for athletes and also icing the athletes down if injured. During that time she also looks at new injuries and help communicate injuries to the coaches and parents so they know how bad of a condition it is.

2) How long do you work on a regular day?

She usually stays at the high school from 3:15 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. but sometimes stays later based on if a game is running late or if she needs to finish up some paperwork. Also preparing for the next day causes her to be at the high school late.

3) Is having good writing skills important in this field?

She told me it's very important. She handles participation form all the way to writing up injury sheets. It crucial that you have a good reading and writing background in this profession. Most of her time consist of looking over papers. She also writes a equipment form so that the school can buy her supplies for her profession.

4) When you have to write for your profession, what do you write?

She writes a lot of equipment forms. A lot of Athletic Training equipment runs out, like tape for example. So every month she needs a new supply of equipment. She has to write how much they need, what kind they need, and how much they need of it. If the day gets really bad she would have to write up an injury report and explain what happened and what she did to prevent it from getting worse.

5) When you write for your profession, how do you write them?

She says you have to be demanding and assertive. If it comes to buying supplies, she says you need to demand them because the high school just doesn't understand what they go through and what type of equipment works. When she's writing up an injury report, she needs to know what she's talking about because other professional will be looking at her report as well. In this field you need to be a professional.

6) What does it truly mean to be an Athletic Trainer?

"Being an Athletic Trainer means you'll always be around to help people in need. You have to be smart and know what you're doing but you also need to have a good sense of humor in this field as well. This job has a lot of frustrating times but if you make the best of it you'll enjoy it. Preventing injury and taking care of people is what you'll be doing and if you that sounds good to you then this is the dream job."

It was nice to finally chat with my old Athletic Trainer from my old high school. It's nice to actually hear someones input on a profession I'm actually trying to get in and who actually has experience in it as well. 

  

Free Response #2: Stuff Athletic Trainers Say

This video is a little funny but it also proves a point that Athletic Trainers are constantly running around  and never getting a break until they go home for the day. Being an Athletic Trainer means you are always going to be responsible for taking care of people at any hour of the day. So if you think you can give that much time to your career then this job is for you. Enjoy the video!

Work Cited
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Um5aQlKmMsU

Week #2 Prompt: Considering Delivery and Style

The two sources that I compared was a blog from Paul LaDuke, whose has been an Athletic Trainer for twenty years working with a scale of different levels of athletes with a scholarly article by James Mensch from the University of South Carolina. The style from both pieces were very different. The scholarly article written by James Mensch was very professional but also very hard to understand if you don't know that much about the Athletic Training field. As difficult as it is, he did put up a summary section so it could be easier for the readers. The blog from Paul LaDuke was way more easier to understand and it was very opinionated, but also it gives a good source on how one feels about the work and experience of the Athletic Training job. The delivery from both was also different. The blog was more like an easy to read essay while the scholarly article was written like a research paper with lots of paragraphs and bullet points to share different topics. The only similarity is that both pieces of work are both trying to get an audience of new people with a purpose to get people considering the field of Athletic Training.


Work Citied
LaDuke, Paul. "Athletic Training - A World of Adventure." Promote The Profession. Discovery Networks, 04 8 2013. Web. Web. 22 Jan 2014. <http://promotetheprofession.wordpress.com/2013/04/04/athletic-training-a-world-of-adventure/#more-716>.

Mensch, James. Choosing a Career in Athletic Training: Exploring the Perceptions of Potential Recruits. National Athletic Trainers Association, n. d. Web. Web. 22 Jan 2014. <http://search.proquest.com.proxy1.cl.msu.edu/docview/206654215/14321FCE27E1BE31964/6?accountid=12598>.

Week #1 Free Response: Turf Toe Taping

In my KIN 127, my professor has been showing the class useful and very important taping skills. His name is Ryan N. Moran, he actually graduated from Michigan State and been in all levels of Athletic Training. He said he went from high school all the way to D1 college football and he said that your taping skills is the most important tool for an Athletic Trainer. The one I want to talk about for this post is the "Turf Toe" taping.

(Turf Toe Taping)

Turf Toe is a sprain in the metatarsophalangeal joint (MTP) in the toe. It's the most common injury with athletes of all different sports. Without being treated it can take you out of commission for a couple days. The reason for taping it is to make the big toe motionless so it can heal with a little rest. The reason for making the toe motionless is because moving the joint can cause extreme pain to it and could make it into a bigger problem then what it actually is. So with taping it and resting for a couple days it will be back to normal soon.

Beam, Joel. Orthopedic Taping, Wrapping, Bracing, & Padding. 2nd ed. F.A. Davis Company, 2011. 512. Print.

About Me

About Me

My name is Jake Roberts and I'm currently a student at Michigan State University. My major is Athletic Training and hopefully this will be my career in the future. I've chosen to become an Athletic Trainer because I was also an athlete and I always wanted to go into the medial field, so I thought this would be the best choice for my career. I started this blog to find out what it takes to become an Athletic Trainer and what it means.

My Interests

• Sixties music
• Football
• Guitar
• The show "The Mentalist."

As a person, I'm easy going but know when to get the job done.

As a student, I'm eager to learn and willing to put the time into my studies.

As a writer, I'm creative and always willing to amuse people.

This blog will be updated weekly about information on Athletic Training. Please enjoy!

Week #1 Prompt: 10 Questions About the Profession of Athletic Training.

When I started looking into the profession of Athletic Training I found myself with questions that I couldn't answer. I realized at that point that I didn't know what it took to be an Athletic Training until I did a little research and figured it out. Hopefully in the future these questions and answers down below will help another student who is thinking about going into this amazing field!

Q1: What is an Athletic Trainer?
A: They are health care professionals who specialize in preventing, recognizing, managing, and rehabilitating injuries. They specialize in sports medicine and each year a max of 20,780 are employed.

Q2: Where would you see an Athletic Trainer?
A: They usually work in clinics, secondary schools, colleges/universities, professional sports programs, and other athletic health care settings.

Q3: Do Athletic Trainers only work around athletes?
A: No, they also work with the fields of the performing arts and the entertainment industry. They also work in the law enforcement departments and in the military!

Q4: What's the average salary of an Athletic Trainer?
A: The average salary for a typical Athletic Trainer is $39,887.

Q5: How far does Athletic Training go back?
A: Early signs go back to the Greek and Roman civilizations. Where athletes in the colosseums would be trained and worked on before the athletes games.

Q6: How important is Athletic Trainers record keeping skills?
A: Very important! This one skill is everything for this profession because they are always dealing with injury reports, treatment records, athlete participation, medical histories, and etc.

Q7: Do Athletic Trainers need to be in good shape?
A: No, but it would be better if they lived a healthy life with exercise and good food eating habits. The reason why they should be in good shape is because athletic training requires abundant energy, vitality, and physical and emotional stability.

Q8: Does Athletic Training need a sense of empathy?
A: Yes, empathy helps them enter into the feeling or spirit of another person. Knowing how the athlete or patient feels will help the Athletic Trainer recognize the problem quicker and allow them to get the athlete back on their feet in no time.

Q9: How do you become a certified Athletic Trainer?
A: There's three things you have to do to become a certified Athletic Trainer. 1) You must earn a bachelors or master's degree from a college or university that has an athletic training program accredited by the CAATE. 2) After graduation students must pass the BOC certification exam and earn the ATC credential before practicing as a certified athletic trainer. 3) Keep up with future education about your profession because skills and the way to do things may change over time.

Q10: Should Athletic Trainers have a good sense of humor in this line of work?
A: Yes,  having a good personality and sense of humor in this line of work will make the job easier and also make the athletes or patients more comfortable around you. With a good personality it will make the line of work easier on the Athletic Trainer as well.

The book I used for this blog was titled "Principles of Athletic Training," it worked wonders for me on this blog. It told me everything I needed to know but also in my KIN 126 my professor has been an Athletic Trainer for years, so anything I had questions about I just talked to him as a second source. With these two sources I really found out what it takes and means to be a certified Athletic Trainer.

Prentice, William. Principles of Athletic Training. 14th ed. McGraw-Hill Companies, The, 2010. 928. Print.