SLU AT Clinical Site Spotlight - Saint Louis Football Club
By: Amelia Meigs (SLU MAT Class of 2017)
The last 6 weeks, I have had the privilege of working with the Saint Louis Football Club team, under their Head Athletic Trainer, Brian Bounds, MPT, ATC, LAT, CSCS. Working with a professional-level team is markedly different than my previous clinical experiences. While I have previously worked with soccer, the level of athlete, training, and healthcare are very different. My background in soccer has become useful as Brian and I have worked together to improve current injury prevention efforts and streamline the team’s exercises. Brian leads cool-down each day at practice, so we are developing a rotation of stretches and exercises that are relevant to the elite soccer player.
Working with the athletes at Saint Louis FC has been incredible--the dedication and effort of these players to improve their personal fitness and wellbeing makes injury prevention easy. While we spend a lot of time managing current injuries, we are also able to spend a significant amount of time analyzing data through the GPS trackers and heart rate monitors the players wear at each practice. Since this technology is new to STLFC, we are exploring the technology and are able to use it to guide our practice. I have gained a lot of soccer-specific knowledge, including the most common muscular deficits soccer players face.
Brian has been an excellent preceptor so far, allowing me input into decisions and pushing me to research new topics. His dedication to athletic training and to the continual pursuit of a better way to perform his job is an exemplary model for my own practice. The lessons I have learned at STLFC will lead me in my future career.
This is one of a series of posts by the Saint Louis University Athletic Training students featuring their clinical site and their preceptors. The number, quality and diversity of clinical instruction are major assets for the SLU AT Program.
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