November 10, 2005 at 7:45 a.m.
Chisago hires new athletic trainer
Chisago hires new athletic trainer
As this reporter understands it, athletic trainers help students and staff learn ways to prevent injuries and, if need be, to recover more quickly and completely from injuries they may have sustained. The person given that responsibility is a 24 year old Certified Athletic trainer named Anna Johnson.
Johnson was raised in the south central Minnesota community of Blue Earth. Her dad, an EMT (Emergency Medical Technician), was the inspiration for her interest in the treatment and prevention of injuries. This interest led her into the field of athletic training. For three years, she served as a student athletic trainer at Blue Earth High School. During that period, she was a student trainer for the football and boys’ basketball teams. BEHS even sent her to Iowa for training. By the time Johnson was a senior, she had also become certified as an EMT.
After graduation, Johnson chose Bethel College in St. Paul as the place to further her studies in Athletic Training. There are only four other schools in Minnesota that offer the opportunity for students to earn a bachelor’s degree in Athletic Training. While a student at Bethel, she worked as a trainer with athletic teams.
According to Johnson, “I really enjoyed working with the Division Three athletes because they were there for the love of the sport, not for the scholarships.” (D-3 schools do not award athletic scholarships)
Until last Spring, all Johnson’s work in injury prevention and treatment had been volunteer work. Her first paid position was as a part-time trainer at Irondale High School. Like many recent grads, Anna turned to the internet when she started her job search. She found success through the National Athletic Trainers Assn. website, where she learned of an opening in the Fairview system. She spends part of her day working in the Fairview Chisago Lakes Rehabilitation Department and the rest as the trainer at CLHS.
She emphasized that her work is part of a team effort. She works closely with a Physical Therapist and an M.D. Referrals from them account for a portion of her workload. The reverse is also true. For example, Johnson is often the first medical professional to deal with an injured CLHS athlete. If she can diagnose and treat the injury or condition, she does. If not, she calls for the help of a PT or a doctor.
At the Fairview Clinic, Johnson works under the supervision of a senior Physical Therapist. At school, Activities Director Perry Aadland serves in that role.
While there seems to be no “Typical Day” in the life of an athletic trainer, Johnson’s time at school is usually spent “treating any student or staff who walks through the door.” She’s in the training room from 2:15-4:15 helping with a variety of sprains, strains and complaints. She might be taping football players’ ankles, helping a volleyball player recover from a muscle strain or teaching a cross country runner how to manage shin splints.
When asked what the most common athletic injuries are, Johnson responded, “That’s easy, ankle sprains, followed by bumps and bruises, fingers, knees and shoulders.” While understandably reticent to talk about specific injuries, the trainer was willing to share, “There’s always a kid who comes in with a bruise and is absolutely certain he or she needs an MRI or surgery. I tell them to apply ice and they come in the next day and think I’m a genius.”
The second part of the school half of her job is as an on-site first responder at athletic events. During the fall sports season, Johnson had coverage for both soccer teams, varsity and JV football games and varsity volleyball. If two events events overlapped (e.g . soccer and volleyball) she started at the 5pm soccer game and moved to the 7pm volleyball game.
If events occur simultaneously, she prioritizes them on the basis of the severity of injuries that are likely to occur. In the winter season, basketball, wrestling and hockey may all start at 7pm. In that case, Anna would go to the hockey game first, wrestling second and basketball third. The rationale is that, if an athlete is injured, the hockey injury is likely to be more serious than one sustained in either of the other sports.
When injuries happen and are, in Johnson’s opinion, “serious enough” athletes must be cleared by a physician before they can return to practice and competition. She emphasized that she has had the cooperation of Aadland, the coaches and the parents. “Usually, after I’ve had a chance to talk to them about the injury, they’ve supported me 100 percent.”
It was hard to get Johnson to come up with the worst thing about the job. But, after some thought, she said, “The paperwork! And there’s a lot of time at nights. But, we manage to have some down time between sports seasons.”
She had a much quicker and more definitive response when asked about the best part of the job. “The students; the athletes,” she said. She elaborated by using the girls’ soccer team as an example. “They were just a fun loving group. We spent a lot of time laughing.”
Johnson couldn’t be more positive about the conditions she works in. “I have a great training facility and I’ve had a lot of support from the A.D. and the coaches.” An ideal working situation would give her “more time with the students. I’d like to have more time with the education portion - Here’s what’s wrong and here’s how we fix it.” She’d also like to have enough time to work with injury prevention (stretching, strengthening, etc.)
When asked about career goals, Johnson wasn’t quite sure but she did say, “I don’t feel that I’m done with school, yet.” But all the things she’s considering (athletic training, special education, teaching) involve young people. She added, “I love what I do. I have the best job in the world.”
Wouldn’t it be great if we all felt that way about our jobs? (Normally I’d be concerned that my boss might take this the wrong way. However, he always tells me that nobody reads what I write, anyway.)
This young athletic trainer seems to have her head firmly attached and brings the education, enthusiasm and expertise to be a real asset to the students and staff of the school district.
Keeping that in mind, the interview ended with a final question. What advice can you give to parents and kids about staying healthy?
“Stay active and drink your water,” was the response.
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