There’s a lot going on in high school – handling academically demanding classes, learning time management, forming new relationships and working first part-time jobs, to name a few. High school athletes balance even more, from practice schedules to college prospects and managing their mental and physical health. Their team is key to helping them. That includes their coach, teammates and athletic trainer.
That’s part of the reason why The University of Kansas Health System has made it a priority to partner with local high schools and middle schools to provide them with care from our athletic trainers. This program has been in place for 12 years. Doug Wiesner, director of the youth sports medicine program, said he initiated the health system’s first partnership with the DeSoto School District when he realized there was a real need for it.
“I’d been in the community at different high schools, and I knew that the high school community, especially, wasn't receiving the care that they needed,” Wiesner said. “We put the athletic trainer in the schools, and we want them to be part of that fabric of the school. It's so important for them to be embedded and become part of that community.”
Now health system athletic trainers are staffed at 38 schools in the metro area. They work full-time at partner high schools, helping student-athletes prevent injuries, providing support at practice and attending games to give assistance to all teams playing. They are also supported by the health system’s sports medicine physicians and provide continuity of care when a student needs to access services for an injury or concussion at the health system. Additionally, trainers work with physicians to help injured student-athletes return to play.
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