BRUNSWICK, Georgia: March 23, 2010 – March is Athletic Training Month
and Southeast Georgia Health System would like to recognize the highly
trained individuals who work for the Health System in five area schools
at no cost to the schools. These athletic trainers are: Team Leader Heather
Vogler, ATC, Glynn Academy; Dan Welch, ATC, Brantley County High School;
Chantal Pierre, ATC, Brunswick High School; Becky Knor, ATC, McIntosh
County Academy; and Kathleen Ragsdale, ATC, College of Coastal Georgia.
These health care professionals specialize in the prevention, diagnosis,
treatment, and rehabilitation of sports injuries and illnesses. All certified
athletic trainers have bachelor’s degrees from accredited colleges
or universities and maintain certification through the independent Board
of Certification, Inc. To retain certification, credentialed athletic
trainers must obtain 80 hours of medically related continuing education
credits every three years.
The Health System’s trainers are all certified and they monitor practices
and games, assist in training, travel with their respective teams, as
well as provide support for outpatient rehabilitation. “The athletic
trainers work as my eyes and ears for all the schools which are covered
by the Health System,” says Beau Sasser Jr., M.D., a Health System
orthpaedic surgeon and medical director of the Health System’s Sports
Medicine Program. “This benefits myself, the schools, and the players
by being able to constantly track their progress and safely get them back
on the field.” His colleague and orthopaedic surgeon Denny Carter,
M.D., agrees.
“Our athletic trainers are a vital part of our sports medicine program,”
says Dr. Carter, medical director of the Health System’s Outpatient
Rehabilitation Care Centers and team physician for Brunswick High School.
“They have the trust of the athletes because they work with them
on a daily basis and they provide valuable information about the athletes
when we are assessing on-the-field injuries. We are fortunate to have
very high quality athletic trainers at the schools we cover.”