I think a big issue is the level of burn out and attrition rates that are seen in the athletic training profession. It is hard to gather numbers and come together to overcome problems, especially at the legislative level when you become overwhelmed in your work life, or when you feel work life is taking over your life. 60% of respondents reported that their work interfered with home and family, sometimes resulting in missing family activities.(1) Given the change to a masters program, the time, effort and cost to become an athletic trainer becomes higher and higher with each education requirement increase, additional job duty requirements, and increased hours. Despite all these changes and strides towards improving the profession, it can sometimes feel like the individuals interests aren't at heart when other necessary aspects of the job, like overtime hours or improved salary, are not making progress to match the increased demands of the profession.
Before making profession changes, I think the next area of focus would be to change the culture of the profession. Burnout and attrition in athletic training has always been a topic of research interest and discussion. Individuals who suffer from burnout display decreased work quality which leads to the assumption of decreased quality of patient care.(1) The most common reported causes of burnout come from work-family conflict and role strain. (1) Role strain can include anything from number of hours to unclear roles or responsibilities. By pushing for things like, overtime or increased pay, increased staffing and normalization of saying "no" many of these strains and stressors leading to burnout could be removed or greatly reduced.(1) This is easier said than done. Staffing and salary are a part of the larger battle for respect of athletic training on the healthcare team. Saying no is a collaborative effort of all ATs. If the head athletic trainer consistently misses family events (or perhaps doesn't have family events to attend), is staying in office 15 hours a day and is working from home when they leave office, that sets an unspoken expectation to the rest of the staff. When students or staff are told they can't go to life events because they have to stay to cover an event, it makes them feel as if their life is worth less than a team's game or practice. Things like this are reasons why people feel like work is taking over their home life.
I also think athletic training as a career has the potential to be a really incredible worldwide experience. It is difficult however to create international rules and regulations for scope of practice and licensing of a profession. Take America for example, we don't even have a clear overarching law for all 50 states. It is not impossible though, as seen with the MRA and athletic training recognition in Canada, Ireland and Japan. While it is difficult to have one set structured path towards becoming an international athletic trainer due to differences in educational systems in varying countries, working towards some type of international certification system would be amazing. This would allow many different populations and settings to open up. For example, almost every country has international schools, which are private high schools that expat families send their children to when they don’t speak the native language. Schools like these have athletics programs just like any other high school, however they often rely on the school nurse or coaches for any immediate first aid or medical care. Pushing for athletic trainers in populations such as this, not only helps those populations form healthy habits and prevent and recover from injuries, but it also exposes more of the world to athletic training as a profession and valued healthcare professional.
Opportunities for athletic training-related international experiences, however, are often a mystery to the average student and athletic trainer.(2) Only 10.6% of professional programs offer some type of international experience directly through their athletic training program. (2) Most students who were searching for international experiences found very limited results when searching "athletic training" and vastly more opportunities when searching "sports medicine" or "sports science."(2) This could be due to the differences in terminology and broader nature of some sports medicine related professions in other countries, or from a lack of recognition of athletic training. Either way, the few opportunities that do exist, seem to be hidden from the average athletic trainer, found only by the select few who actively seek these opportunities out.
References:
(1) Oglesby LW, Gallucci AR, Wynveen CJ. Athletic Trainer Burnout: A Systematic Review of the Literature. Journal of athletic training. 2020;55(4):416-430.
(2) Wright CJ. Commentary on International Experience Opportunities for Athletic Training Students: A Perspective from the National Athletic Trainers' Association International Committee. Athletic Training Education Journal. 2019;14(4):255-258.
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