Qualities of Athletic Training Students that Collegiate Athletes Find Desirable
Presentation Type
Poster Presentation
Abstract/Artist Statement
Title: The CAATE, BOC and NATA all guide the development of athletic training students (ATS) to meet the minimum requirements necessary to be effective competent Athletic Trainers (AT). However, the BOC states that obtaining certification doesn’t guarantee quality and professional success of an AT. In order to better develop quality ATS prepared for the workplace, an understanding of what qualities are valued by patients is warranted. While much of the literature has focused on desirable qualities of practicing athletic trainers, little research has specifically focused on the ATS. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess qualities in ATS desired by collegiate athletes in hopes of guiding ATS future education and professional development. Methods: A convenience sampling technique was used to recruit of 26 participants from a Division I Women’s soccer team. Eleven out of 26 participants completed the survey for a response rate of 42%. The Athletic Training Student Quality Survey (ATSQS) is an electronic 24 five-point Likert scaled survey. The survey was developed using Qualtrics and was sent out to subjects via their university emails. Participants were given 10 days to complete the survey. Cronbach’s alpha was used as a reliability coefficient for the ATSQS. Means and standard deviations for each item on the Likert-scale were calculated. Total response percentages were also calculated for each item on the Likert-scale. Results: Cronbach’s alpha was used as the reliability coefficient in this study and was calculated as 0.944 for the ATSQS. Most qualities had mean scores above four (Very important) and the overall mean score across all items was 4.23. The six highest scored qualities included helpful, trustworthy, punctual, consistent, high ethical standards, and admits mistakes. Conclusion: The most desirable qualities in order are helpful, trustworthy, punctual, consistent, high ethical standards and admits mistakes. Practicing as a clinician goes beyond the skills learned in a textbook. Possessing qualities and characteristics that are valued by the patient may enhance communication and interactions that are key in providing patient care. In athletic training, it seems natural that the best way to further develop these qualities in ATS is through clinical education. Clinical education provides ATS the opportunity to learn how to build professional relationships as well as vital communication and people skills in a healthcare setting. Originality: There is currently no literature that exists in athletic training looking at qualities of ATS desired by patients. All AT literature assesses qualities desired by ATs or ATS by fellow clinicians or educators. Significance: Obtaining information from this project has potential to shape the development of ATS in clinical education. By improving this development, ATS will be better set up for success as young professionals In AT and can increase the quality of health care provided by young professional ATs and ATS in clinical education.
Mentor Name
Valerie Moody
Qualities of Athletic Training Students that Collegiate Athletes Find Desirable
UC North Ballroom
Title: The CAATE, BOC and NATA all guide the development of athletic training students (ATS) to meet the minimum requirements necessary to be effective competent Athletic Trainers (AT). However, the BOC states that obtaining certification doesn’t guarantee quality and professional success of an AT. In order to better develop quality ATS prepared for the workplace, an understanding of what qualities are valued by patients is warranted. While much of the literature has focused on desirable qualities of practicing athletic trainers, little research has specifically focused on the ATS. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess qualities in ATS desired by collegiate athletes in hopes of guiding ATS future education and professional development. Methods: A convenience sampling technique was used to recruit of 26 participants from a Division I Women’s soccer team. Eleven out of 26 participants completed the survey for a response rate of 42%. The Athletic Training Student Quality Survey (ATSQS) is an electronic 24 five-point Likert scaled survey. The survey was developed using Qualtrics and was sent out to subjects via their university emails. Participants were given 10 days to complete the survey. Cronbach’s alpha was used as a reliability coefficient for the ATSQS. Means and standard deviations for each item on the Likert-scale were calculated. Total response percentages were also calculated for each item on the Likert-scale. Results: Cronbach’s alpha was used as the reliability coefficient in this study and was calculated as 0.944 for the ATSQS. Most qualities had mean scores above four (Very important) and the overall mean score across all items was 4.23. The six highest scored qualities included helpful, trustworthy, punctual, consistent, high ethical standards, and admits mistakes. Conclusion: The most desirable qualities in order are helpful, trustworthy, punctual, consistent, high ethical standards and admits mistakes. Practicing as a clinician goes beyond the skills learned in a textbook. Possessing qualities and characteristics that are valued by the patient may enhance communication and interactions that are key in providing patient care. In athletic training, it seems natural that the best way to further develop these qualities in ATS is through clinical education. Clinical education provides ATS the opportunity to learn how to build professional relationships as well as vital communication and people skills in a healthcare setting. Originality: There is currently no literature that exists in athletic training looking at qualities of ATS desired by patients. All AT literature assesses qualities desired by ATs or ATS by fellow clinicians or educators. Significance: Obtaining information from this project has potential to shape the development of ATS in clinical education. By improving this development, ATS will be better set up for success as young professionals In AT and can increase the quality of health care provided by young professional ATs and ATS in clinical education.