During my experience as a 2nd year graduate assistant athletic trainer, about to enter the “real world," I feel I've been noticing a trend in our profession: Selfishness. Now, before the angry comments pour in, allow me to explain. I’m not using the word in its traditional meaning, but rather as a figurative idea. It seems as though we, as athletic trainers, often feel the pressure to know it all and do it all by ourselves in order to survive or to justify our spot in the health care world; almost as though we are on an isolated island. This isn’t a new concept to us either. In fact, previous research has cited this as a source for poor work life balance. It all makes sense. Picture this…you are stuck on an evaluation that just isn't making any sense, regardless of the techniques you use. You drive yourself crazy trying to think of the solution…Does this sound familiar? I know I have been the culprit of this thinking more than once and I would be willing to bet 9 times out of 10 we have all done or are doing this to ourselves. In these instances we should take the time to reach out to our fellow athletic trainers, whether it is a mentor from your job, a mentor from your education, or the athletic trainer from the 'rival' high school down the road. Ask if they have any ideas or have experienced what you are experiencing. This little step, trusting our peers, could not only make our lives easier but also improve patient care. I know that being a graduate assistant allows me far more opportunities to ask my peers and see a different point of view, but many ATs don't feel like they can do this.
March is National Athletic Trainers Month. We spend most of the month promoting ourselves, but how about we take a step to help ourselves. Reach out to your colleagues in the professional community and ask for help. Let’s help each other improve the quality of care we provide to our patients and work to gain some balance between work and everyday life. If we don't help ourselves who will?
Who will you reach out to?
Let us know what you think, and share any experiences where you might have gotten a helping hand but reaching out to a peer athletic trainer.
-Austin Krause LAT, ATC
March is National Athletic Trainers Month. We spend most of the month promoting ourselves, but how about we take a step to help ourselves. Reach out to your colleagues in the professional community and ask for help. Let’s help each other improve the quality of care we provide to our patients and work to gain some balance between work and everyday life. If we don't help ourselves who will?
Who will you reach out to?
Let us know what you think, and share any experiences where you might have gotten a helping hand but reaching out to a peer athletic trainer.
-Austin Krause LAT, ATC
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