A certified athletic trainer specializes in prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of injury and illness. Doug West, PhD, ATC, LAT, CSCS, certified athletic trainer and associate director of athletic training at The University of Iowa, talks about the role of athletic trainers:

What is the difference between your role as an athletic trainer and those of us who hire a personal trainer at a gym?

We are a medical professional, we are licensed by the state, and we're also part of the medical team working under the direction of a physician. While you may work with an athletic trainer in a gym, you are more likely to work with a personal trainer who may not have the medical background that an athletic trainer possesses.

How do you and your staff work with The University of Iowa sports teams to prevent injuries?

By attempting to identify conditions that may lead to injury, we can better prevent injury. This may include aspects of mechanics, strength, stability and flexibility.

How crucial to an athlete's recovery is detecting and diagnosing an injury early for that athlete?

It is crucial. If the diagnosis is not correct, then the recovery likely will not go well.

The key aspect is determining what the cause of the pain or deficit is. Often times the cause of the pain is not where the pain is and you need to work with the patient to determine what is wrong and how to overcome the deficit. This is more common for overuse type injuries, but can also be the cause of a acute injuries like an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear.

If an athlete is injured and has surgery, what are your and your staff's roles in his/her recovery and return to the team?

It is important, just as every person's role on the health care team is important. We must ensure that we are well versed in the specific rehabilitation in the case of an ACL, and if we are not familiar with it, then we work with those professionals who are maybe more familiar with the specific post-surgery recovery.

For instance, we work closely with the physician who does the surgery. Before the surgery, we may do strength and coordination training to ready the patient for what will occur after the surgery. The surgeon may have specific instructions to be followed depending upon what occurs during the surgery. After the surgery, we may work closely with the physical therapist to establish the rehabilitation goals, then we continue to progress the patient back to their activity.

Is the role of an athletic trainer gratifying?

For me it is very gratifying, just as for my peers in the profession or other professionals it is gratifying to work with motivated patients that want to return to a high level. Like most people who are proficient at their professions, if you enjoy what you do, you're going to do well.

I enjoy getting to know patients well. We are a unique health care profession because we work with patients when they are healthy and when they're injured. So we get to see patients in good times and not such good times.

What is the best advice you have for anyone considering a career in athletic training?

I suggest they do well in science courses and take a lot of sciences courses—the chemistries, the physics, the biologies. Many believe that athletic trainers need to be good communicators, so being an effective communicator, both written and oral, is very important because we have to communicate with patients, coaches, parents, administrators, and all members of the health care team.

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Doug West, PhD, ATC, LAT, CSCS