A recent collaboration between emergency medical services and athletic trainers in North Fond du Lac aims to enhance the response to sports-related injuries. The partnership is expected to ensure more effective and timely care for athletes experiencing emergencies on the field.
According to data from the National Spinal Cord Injury Center, sports-related injuries rank as the fourth leading cause of spinal cord injuries. Understanding the gravity of this issue, SSM Health and the North Fond du Lac Fire Department have initiated joint training sessions to refine skills in sports equipment removal and response to head and neck injury scenarios.
Athletic trainers, skilled healthcare professionals, play a vital role in providing immediate care, preventive programming, and rehabilitation for sports injuries. During the recent training sessions, Ryan Johnson, a recognized athletic trainer at SSM Health, worked closely with the North Fond du Lac Fire Department. The sessions were designed to foster better communication and collaboration during emergency incidents involving student-athletes.
Assistant Chief of the North Fond du Lac Fire Department, Adam Moriarty, emphasized the importance of synergy between their staff and athletic trainers. In a statement, he noted, “Last football season, we had a few instances where EMS was called to the field. While we have established hand signals for the athletic training staff to signal for EMS, we recognized the need for further collaboration in patient care.”
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