Athletic Training at Milford High School Offers Support to Athletes
Athletic Trainer Stacy M. Trice, PT, SCS, ATC, is on the sidelines at Milford High School to provide immediate medical care when student athletes are injured. AsBayhealth’s Supervisor of Athletic Training Services, Trice is an athletic trainer and clinical physical therapist at Kent General’s Outpatient Services. She initiated the program in 2016 at Milford High School.
“The Athletic Training Program evolved because of the need for sports medicine services at Milford High School,” said Trice. “There was community concern regarding the safety of the athletes and lack of appropriate medical coverage during athletic practices and competitions. Bayhealth administration saw it as an excellent opportunity to expand the Outpatient Physical Therapy Sports Medicine Services into the local high schools.”
March is National Athletic Training Month, and the 2017 National Athletic Trainers Association slogan for the month is, “Your Protection is Our Priority.” Trice says the same rings true of Bayhealth’s philosophy regarding their athletic training services.
“We have a unique opportunity to provide a number of services,” said Trice. “We have umbrella access to X-rays, special testing, and various Bayhealth physicians such as orthopaedic surgeons and neurosurgeons, which allows for better follow-up after an athlete is injured.”
National Brain Injury Awareness Month is also marked in March. As part of her services to area high schools, Trice conducts pre-season, computer-based ImPACT concussion testing for all Milford High School athletes involved in contact/collision sports. The test provides baseline data about cognitive function which is stored and can be used by trained professionals for comparison after an injury. Although the most frequent sports injuries are sprains and strains, athletic trainers play a key role in concussion management. “Doctors use information gained from post-injury ImPACT testing as a follow-up to determine if an athlete can safely return to play,” Trice said.
Although Milford is the only high school currently contracted with Bayhealth for athletic training services, “the goal is to be able to provide quality sports medicine coverage including ImPACT testing, practice/event coverage, and medical follow-up to all high schools within the local area in the future” said Trice.
“It will take some time to build the program, but it’s my goal and the goal of Bayhealth Rehabilitative Services to be the leading provider for sports medicine coverage in the future.”
For more information about Bayhealth Sports Medicine program, call 302-744-7095.
