SLU AT Student Experiences Collaborative Athletic Health Care at Division I Setting

Summer Internship Blog Post – Georgetown University
By: Tori Lycett (MAT Class of 2015)

During my summer internship I had the opportunity to work under Erin Pettinger ATC at Georgetown University in Washington, DC. Georgetown University, much like other NCAA Division 1 colleges, has multiple Athletic Trainers on staff who each have designated sports. Erin specifically works with Men's Lacrosse, Men's Golf, and Sailing, however I had the chance to get experience with several other ATs on staff under the supervision of Erin.  Each of the Athletic Trainers on staff came from different parts of United States and had different backgrounds in education and experience. This gave me the opportunity to learn different techniques, and help to widen my perspective of different parts of Athletic Training. At Georgetown University most of the athletes on campus were there for summer workouts or summer camps. Although it was not the busiest season for sports, this gave me the opportunity to better understand how a D1 Athletic Training room functioned, and how the staff utilized interprofessional care for each athlete. Each week different physicians would visit the athletic training room to run physicals, check up on athletes, and talk directly with the athletic training staff to ensure that everything was ready for the fall preseason. Throughout my internship I also had the privilege to observe one of Georgetown University sports medicine PT's who had a very unique and educational approach to evaluations and treatment of athletes.

Erin Pettinger ATC, Tori Lycett and Emily Deck ATC.

Going into my internship I didn't know what to expect and went in open minded. I chose to intern at Georgetown because I want to eventually work in a D1 setting. Since I was once a college athlete I had an idea of what it would be like however being an athlete is completely different than athletic training. In my fall rotation I worked at Lindenwood University, a small NAIA college, however interning at Georgetown University ensured my goal. Working with college athletes is completely different then other settings. Not only are the athletes motivated differently but the interprofessional care they receive is different especially in D1. In D1 the athletic trainers directly work with physicians, orthopedists, PTs, etc. That aspect of health care is not only important for the patient-centered care of the athlete, but it also helps for you as a practioner to learn. I can't thank Erin and the athletic training staff at Georgetown University enough for giving me this opportunity to learn and become more familiar with the dynamics of a D1 athletic training room.

Students in the Saint Louis University Athletic Training Program have a required internship in the summer between their two professional years in the program. This blog post details a student's reflection on their internship experience.