SLU AT Student Appreciates Support from Preceptor and School Community at Parkway Central HS

SLU AT Clinical Site Spotlight - Parkway Central High School
By: Christopher Mecherle (MAT Class of 2019) 

Parkway Central High School has been a valuable experience on my path to becoming a certified athletic trainer. I’m certain once I’m out and working after college that I will look fondly on the skills that I have forged and refined during the last two semesters. My preceptor and SLU alum Michael Aaron, MAT, ATC, from Mercy Sports Medicine, is very enthusiastic about having an athletic training student. He always considers when and where there may be a learning opportunity to take advantage of, and for that, I am grateful.

For the most part, I feel comfortable in the athletic training setting. Performing evaluations, treatment, rehab, and first-aid definitely feels more natural than it did a year ago. So in my perspective, this semester has been more about discovering how I want my athletic training identity to take shape. It’s made me think about how I can be a transformational force in whatever setting I choose to be in. I often tend to question more about how I carry myself and if I project a fitting aura of professionalism. All in all, my skills are getting to be more second nature, and now it’s my persona that needs fine-tuning.

Parkway Central staff and athletes have been appreciative and accommodating of me, and I cannot thank them enough for their support. I look forward to finishing out the year with the Colts!

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.

SLU AT Student Grows Professionally Alongside Preceptor at Parkway Central HS

SLU AT Clinical Site Spotlight - Parkway Central High School

By: Christopher Mecherle (SLU MAT Class of 2019)

During my second year in the professional phase of the SLU Athletic Training Program, I am honored to have a clinical experience with Parkway Central High School’s certified athletic trainer, Michael Aaron, MAT, ATC. While most of Michael and I’s time are spent at Parkway Central, Michael works for Mercy Sports Medicine. We utilize Mercy policies and protocols, and in turn, it has allowed us to provide the best possible healthcare to the student athletes. Organization has been key, and Michael is always accomplishing what needs to be done in the most efficient manner. I’m happy to be along for the ride.

This will be my second clinical experience in the high school setting, and I can safely say it has been good to be back. The plethora of student athletes that we see everyday has been great hands on experience. The time spent with them has sharpened my skills considerably since my first day this summer. In addition to the athletes, the faculty has also been a pleasure to work with. Each interaction is genuine, and coaches respect our healthcare team.

Overall, Parkway Central High School has been a fantastic place to grow as an AT student, and as a person. We are constantly busy, and being vigilant and calm can be a challenge occasionally. It has pushed my limits to a certain extent, and quite frankly I hope that is always the case.

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.

SLU AT Student Builds Knowledge and Skills in Busy Setting at Parkway Central High School

SLU AT Clinical Site Spotlight - Parkway Central High School

By: Bridget Bushong (SLU MAT Class of 2018) 

This school year I am at Parkway Central High School as my final clinical rotation. I am really enjoying my experience at Parkway Central thus far. I have seen many injuries that I have not experienced before. Therefore, I practice evaluation techniques and assessing new injuries and I am becoming more comfortable doing them. 

Parkway Central is a large school with eight fall sports, four winter sports and eight spring sports there is always a lot going on in the athletic training room. My preceptor, Michael Aaron MAT, ATC, is awesome at giving me opportunities to practice new things. It’s great because he is a SLU alum so he’s a great resource for things relating to classes as well as being at Parkway Central.

I aspire to work in the high school setting so this experience is showing me everything that an AT does in the high school. We see a wide range of injuries and complaints from athletes so it keeps me on my toes for whatever is going to happen next. The athletic training room has limited modalities so a lot of the stuff we do is hands on. This has helped me develop my rehab skills and adapt to how a patient is responding to the treatment we are doing with them. It’s satisfying to see that my treatment helps an athlete to feel better and challenges me when something may not work how I originally thought it would. 

I cannot wait to see what the rest of this school year holds for me at Parkway Central.

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.

SLU AT Student Appreciates Professional Growth Guided by Preceptor at Parkway Central HS

SLU AT Clinical Site Spotlight - Parkway Central High School

By: Sarah Haenchen (SLU MAT Class of 2017)

Time has gone by too fast, and I can’t believe my clinical experience at Parkway Central will be coming to an end soon. I have enjoyed working at PCHS with Mercy Sports Medicine athletic trainer and SLU athletic training graduate Michael Aaron, ATC (SLU MAT Class of 2015). Michael has challenged me by asking questions of why I do certain things during my evaluations and rehabilitation programs. This helps him figure out my thought process, but also has helped me refine my evaluations and rehabs and makes me consider the best practices based on evidence to give quality care. He also quizzes me on anatomy. This has been a great review, especially since I will be taking the Board of Certification exam soon. I have learned a lot from Michael not just with the duties of athletic training, but also personal health and well-being. I have learned to find balance in my life in order to provide excellent care to the patients.

I’m excited for the spring sports to begin. My favorite part about the upcoming spring sports season is being able to go outside and tackling the challenge of having multiple sports going on at the same time at different locations. The low demand of the winter sports season was a great time for me to learn and grow. My previous experience with Mercy Sports Medicine has helped me understand the importance of coordinated care. I was able to spend more time with my patients during rehab ensuring that they were performing the exercises correctly and reaching their goals. I was also able to review and assist in conducting selective functional movement assessments (SFMA) and give corrective exercises to patients with dysfunctional movement. During our down time, Michael and I organized the athletic training room and came up with plans to improve patient education and care for next year.

My clinical experience has shaped me to be the best clinician I can be. I’ve learned a ton throughout my experience and am determined to continue to learn. I am thankful to all the preceptors I’ve had. I appreciate all the support I have gotten from my family, the SLU AT program, my preceptors, and my friends. A special thanks goes to both Parkway South and Parkway Central for letting me be part of the healthcare team and Parkway community. I felt at home at both high schools and will never forget the great experience I had. I also want to thank Mercy Sports Medicine for their dedication to provide high standard quality sports medicine services. I can’t wait for the next step in my journey, and I am excited for my future career as an athletic trainer!

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.

SLU AT Student Appreciates Experience with SLU Alum/Preceptor at Parkway Central HS

SLU AT Clinical Site Spotlight - Parkway Central High School

By: Sarah Haenchen (SLU MAT Class of 2017)

This year I am at Parkway Central High School working with Michael Aaron, ATC (SLU MAT Class of 2015). I have been very fortunate to continue working with Mercy Sports Medicine and at another Parkway school. I am also lucky to work with another Saint Louis University Athletic Training alum. Michael also helps Dr. Kitty Newsham teach the PY1 students in musculoskeletal assessment lab at SLU. When we reflect back to our time as a PY1 student, it amazes us on how much we learned. I enjoy and am thankful for the challenges and opportunities that Michael provides me in order for me to become a better clinician.

My time at the Mercy Sports Medicine clinic over the summer has helped me become confident in evaluating and rehabbing dysfunctional movement patterns. I am able to use those skills at PCH. While time is limited at the high school setting, Michael and I take advantage when we have down time to go through Selective Functional Movement Assessments (SFMA) on athletes who could benefit from this assessment. It is also helpful that I know what goes on in the clinic especially if we have to refer an athlete for additional therapy. This helps with collaborating care and making sure the athlete is getting quality care.

Parkway Central is a great place for my clinical experience as it is the setting I want to work in after I graduate. I enjoy the challenges of working at a large school with a variety of sports. This setting provides me with several opportunities to practice my skills of emergency care, evaluation and treatment, injury prevention and administration. The PCH community has been very welcoming, and there is a lot of team spirit during game days. I always look forward to going to PCH to provide the best care to the athletes and growing as a professional. I am excited for the winter sports season to start up and hope that our fall sports do well with the rest of their season. Go Colts!

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.

SLU AT Student Gets Real-time Practice at Parkway Central High School

SLU AT Clinical Site Spotlight - Parkway Central High School

By: C.J. Spink (MAT Class of 2016)

Parkway Central High School has given me the opportunity to witness and assess injuries of athletes whose level of physical development varies as individuals mature substantially from the moment they walk through the doors their freshmen year. This experience has allowed me to interact with student-athletes whose level of familiarity with injury or cooperation with a health care provider ranges from unknowing and apprehensive to experienced and cooperative. Having this difference in the athletes’ comfort level has required me to use stronger communication skills in order to explain the problems that an inexperienced individual may be facing as well as describing the severity of an injury to an older athlete. 

C.J. Spink and Matt Markelz ATC

Matt Markelz ATC, the AT at Parkway Central through PRORehab, has been a great preceptor and mentor. He has been the Athletic Trainer at Parkway Central for about ten years and interned with the Chicago Bears prior to making his way to St. Louis County. Matt has shared his experiences with me in both settings and has given me insight on the daily tasks associated with both the professional and high school levels. This information has influenced my thoughts on where my professional future will lead me following the completion of my program. 

Aside from improving communication skills and pondering my future career path, the injuries that I have encountered at Parkway Central have varied from cuts, muscle contusions, ankle sprains, concussions, an ACL tear and even a mid-shaft femoral fracture. Rehabilitation of the mid-shaft femoral fracture and ACL tear have been educational in how the process of providing rehabilitation for extreme injuries works, but observing and treating the everyday bumps and bruises has shown to be more commonly the task that is required in the every day job of an athletic trainer. My clinical experience has allowed me to perform muscle and joint tests under the supervision of an AT and has shown me that an athlete who has been hurt may not necessarily be injured. It has proved that assessing history and mechanism of injury is crucial in the process of diagnosing injuries and providing the student-athlete with the proper information concerning their health. Thus, allowing them to return to the field of play as quickly as possible. 

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.

Therapeutic Modalities Lab Gets an Upgrade and SLU "Pays Forward" to the Community

The Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training in the Doisy College of Health Sciences at Saint Louis University utilizes the Therapeutic Modalities Lab in the Allied Health Building on the Medical Center Campus for many classes.  On February 20, 2014 the fixed height tables in the lab were replaced with 18 adjustable height (hi-lo) tables giving the lab a total of 22 adjustable height tables.  This is the first phase of a lab remodel that also includes technology enhance which allows linking between two other PT/AT labs for synchronous lab sessions in multiple rooms.

The lab is kept busy with many PT and AT classes. One of the biggest classes to use the lab is DPT/MAT 430, Therapeutic Modalities, where over 100 PT and AT students learn together in a class that utilizes technology, lectures and 4 lab section of around 25 students each.  Dr. Jason Bennett (PT faculty) and Dr. Tony Breitbach (AT faculty) have served as course coordinators for the class.  The class also utilizes both PT's and AT's as lab instructors.

This remodel has also allowed the Department of PT & AT to "pay forward" in the community.  The fixed height tables were offered to clinical sites on an "as-is" first come-first serve basis.  The following sites received fixed height tables:

Health Resource Center PT Clinic - https://medschool.slu.edu/hrc/

Bishop Dubourg High School AT Facility

Lutheran High School-South AT Facility
Parkway Central High School AT Facility

St. Mary's High School AT Facility

Triad High School AT Facility

Webster Groves High School AT Teaching Lab

SLU AT Clinical Site Spotlight - Parkway Central High School

Parkway Central High School - Home of the Colts!
By: Claire Botting (MAT Class of 2014)

This fall and spring semester I get to spend my second professional year at Parkway Central High School with athletic trainer Matt Markelz ATC from PRORehab. Located on a big and beautiful campus in Chesterfield, MO, I get the opportunity to practice and hone my skills I have learned in the classroom and at my past clinical sites. Working alongside Matt, the athletes, and the coaches has been a positive and rewarding experience. I have felt welcomed since day one and am grateful for them allowing me the opportunity to grow as a professional.

Matt Markelz ATC and Claire Botting

This fall I got to work with many different sports including football, boys’ soccer, boys swimming, girls’ volleyball, softball and cross country. It was really exciting football season as the team made it all the way to the Edwards Jones Dome for the Class 5 MSHSAA State Championship. While the outcome wasn't in our favor, it was still a fun and enjoyable season that I’m glad I got to be a part of.   I also got the unique opportunity to cover multiple cross country events since PCHS has a course right on campus.

When Matt and I aren’t covering games or practices, the athletes are keeping us busy in the athletic training room. Between taping, rehab and doing injury evaluations, there is always an opportunity to learn something new. With the busy fall season finally finished, we are beginning to transition into winter sports. Winter sports at PCHS include boys and girls basketball, girls swimming and wrestling. The athletic training room is a little less hectic but there still is always something do! I’m looking forward to what this winter season has in store for us! Go Colts!

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.

SLU AT Clinical Site Spotlight - Parkway Central High School

Parkway Central - Home of the Colts!

By: Sarah Hall, SLU MAT Class of 2013

At Parkway Central High School this year I have been able to interact with coaches, athletes, the athletic director, administrators, and parents.  Parkway Central hosts many Basketball and Soccer tournaments every year because they have such a big beautiful campus.  Matt Markelz is the athletic trainer, he is contracted through PRORehab to provide services to the school.   Matt has been at PCH for 8 years.  

Matt Markelz ATC and SLU AT student Sarah Hall on the sidelines at Parkway Central.

I have been able to experiences some unique opportunities during my time here. First I was able to observe surgery for a day at City Place with Dr. Ramus.  I was able to watch 2 knee arthroscopic surgeries, 2 shoulder arthroscopic surgeries and an ACL Replacement of one of our own PCH athletes.  I have also been able to work with water polo, a sport I have not yet ever watched.  I got the opportunity to travel with the football team to Camdenton for the quarter finals where we won.  

We have recently had a pre-professional SLU AT student, Shannon Kane with us observing, it has been nice sharing my experiences with her and helping her prepare for her time in the professional phases of the AT program.  I have enjoyed my time at PCH, it has been a good learning environment for my final year.  

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.

SLU AT Clinical Site Spotlight - Parkway Central High School

Parkway Central High School, Home of the Colts!
by: Sarah Hall (SLU MAT Class of 2013)

Matt Markelz ATC and Sarah Hall (SLU MAT Class of 2013) tend to a  football player.

Parkway Central High School is a great school located off highway 141 in Chesterfield, Missouri.  It is a part of the Parkway School District.  At PCHS they have a wide variety of sports such as football, soccer, volleyball, softball, tennis, cross country, track, water polo, swimming and diving, basketball, and baseball.  Matt Markelz ATC is the PCHS athletic trainer contracted through PRORehab.

During the day Matt works at the ProRehab administration office and in the afternoon/evenings he can be found covering practice games at PCHS.  During my time here I have been able to perform numerous evaluations, discuss injuries with the team doctor, and help athletes return to play.  Matt works closely with the school’s athletic director and coaches to know upcoming game schedules and keep everyone informed of athletes current conditions.

Sarah pitches in for an injured athlete on a rainy night.

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.