
The evidence tells us hiring bias still exists. When we know that regardless of gender, managers are twice as likely to hire a man (read more)… When we know that unqualified individuals are measuring our worth as health care providers based on wins and losses (read more)… we are losing! As long as the individual is qualified for the position; their gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and/or religious affiliation should not matter.
What’s worse is when we handicap ourselves even more to bias based on things we can’t see… Commonly in Athletic Training, hiring committees select individuals based on previous sport experience… not education, qualifications or dedication to the profession. Why are we making things even harder to succeed?
As Athletic Trainers we specialize in musculoskeletal injuries. Our education at the professional level focuses on gaining a variety of experiences with multiple sports, including acute and chronic conditions for the lower and upper extremity, equipment intensive experiences, and general medical conditions. We are well-versed in the prevention, recognition, and treatment of musculoskeletal injuries regardless of sport.
I understand that each of us comes to the profession with our own set of values and perspective, but when we insert those values onto other people, particularly in the hiring process, what are we actually doing? What are the long term implications? Are we creating an environment that never changes, where people hire others that are only like themselves? Do we achieve the diversity in our profession that is reflective of the diversity in our patients?
Michael Neal LAT, ATC