Private High Schools Lagging

Why are we allowing our children to play sports without proper medical coverage? It's a question many parents who have children playing sports at private high schools have to ask more than parents who have kids playing sports at public high schools. 

A recent article in NATA's Journal of Athletic Training, stated that there is a greater percentage of public secondary schools (37%) than private secondary schools (28%) that offer athletic training services to its’ athletes.

According to the study, only 58 percent of private secondary schools provide some amount of athletic training services, compared to 70 percent for public schools. As athletic participation increased for a 25th consecutive year, so has the number of athletic injuries – making the presence of an athletic trainer in the school setting more important than ever.

So why are private high schools lagging behind their public high school peers? Unfortunately, the answers are not conclusive, but it seems to be a mix of budget and school size. Here are the breakdown of responses as to why the school is unable to provide Athletic Training support:

As injuries and deaths continue to occur in the secondary school setting, organizations such as the American Medical Association (AMA) and National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) continue to endorse and support the hiring of ATs to prevent unnecessary injuries and deaths related to sport participation and physical activity.

Obviously, Healthy Roster is focused on helping high schools bring more Athletic Trainer support to their schools and sidelines. But the real way to change the proportion of high school AT support is through parents communicating with their school's athletic directors. Talk to your AD's. Let them know it's no longer an option or luxury to have a dedicated Athletic Trainer on the sidelines. Your child's health is too important!

- Rob Mottice, Director of Customer Success