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IUP Sports Medicine Department
Student-Athlete
Policies
The Sports Medicine Staff is
available to provide evaluation, treatment, rehabilitation, and referral
of athletic injuries. The following procedures have been established to
help expedite you recovery.
Reporting an Injury
Student-Athletes should report all injuries, no
matter how insignificant they may seem, to the Sports Medicine Staff.
Injuries should be reported on the day they occur or during the morning
treatment hours for the specific sport. If injured during practice, the
sports medicine staff will take whatever steps are necessary to expedite
care of the problem. The ATC has final authority on practice
restrictions until the student-athlete is seen by an appropriate
physician, if necessary.
If an emergent injury occurs outside of practice, the
student-athlete should call 911 or report to the Indiana Regional
Medical Center.
Athletes participating in non-traditional season
activities may continue to report injuries to the Sports Medicine Staff
during designated treatment and rehabilitation hours.
Evaluations of Injuries
Evaluations of injuries are done
post-practice and during morning Sports Medicine Clinic hours. If an
injury occurs during a traditional season practice, it will be evaluated
at that time.
It is important for an injury to be
reported in order to be evaluated. By evaluating an injury, a
determination of what the injury might be can be made. Based on this, a
course of treatment can be determined. This can only be done if the
injury is reported and evaluated.
It is important that the
student-athletes communicate honestly with the certified athletic
trainer in order to ensure an accurate evaluation.
Athletes participating in
non-traditional season activities may report to the Clinic for
evaluation during morning treatment hours for evaluation.
Treatment
Treatment of an injury begins once
an injury is evaluated. Treatment is based on each individual case.
No injury is exactly the same, and there is not “cookbook” method to
treatment. Athletes and their injuries respond differently to
treatment, and some may heal faster than others.
Treatment must be consistent to be
effective. Without consistent treatment, the injury will not get
better. It is important that treatment is continued until the
athlete has been discharged by a certified athletic trainer or
physician. Without treating an injury properly, that athlete will not
be able to return to his/her top level of performance.
It is important that the
student-athlete communicate with the members of the athletic training
staff in order to ensure proper progression in treatment. If this is
not done, treatment will not progress, and a referral, if necessary,
cannot be made.
Non-traditional season athletes
will continue treatment within the morning treatment hours.
When a student-athlete is injured
and instructed to report for treatment, they are expected to be there at
the designated time. If a student athlete fails to report, the
student-athletes head coach will be notified. Treatment and
rehabilitation must be done consistently in order for improvement to
occur.
Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation is an important part
of the treatment process. After an injury occurs, the surrounding
muscle must be strengthened, and depending on the type of injury,
flexibility plays an important role. Consistent rehabilitation is
crucial in recovery and returning to play.
Non-traditional season athletes
will continue to follow the morning hours of operation for
rehabilitation.
Physician Referral
Upon evaluation, it may be
necessary to refer a student-athlete to a physician. A student-athlete
may also request to see a physician. For a sport-related injury, this
referral process will be completed by the certified athletic trainer.
This referral involves checking to see which physicians participate with
the student-athlete’s insurance policy. If a student-athlete schedules
his/her own appointment without following the appropriate injury
reporting and referral procedures, IUP refers the right to not pay any
medical bills related to the specific injury, even if it is
sport-related.
Once a student-athlete is referred
to a physician, the student-athlete must be cleared by that physician to
return to full participation. Anytime a student-athlete is seen by a
physician, the IUP sports medicine staff must have documentation of that
visit, and the student-athlete must be cleared by the physician to
return to participation.
Hours of Operation
The athletic training room has
specific hours of operation. This schedule helps to facilitate
evaluation, treatment and rehabilitation, and it allows for pre and
post-practice taping/treatment. Due to the athletic training room being
a busy facility, it is important that these hours are followed. If
there are conflicts with a student-athlete’s schedule, the
student-athlete needs to communicate with the certified athletic trainer
for that particular sport.
The hours of operation are posted
on the bulletin board opposite of the Sports Medicine Clinic door. In
most cases, these hours are also posted outside of each respective
coach’s door. Morning evaluation, treatment and rehabilitation hours
may vary with the schedule of the certified athletic trainer assigned to
that sport. Due to each athletic trainer having to provide coverage for
multiple sports, it is important for these treatment hours be followed.
The Clinic
closes at 6 p.m. daily. Depending on various practice schedules
occurring within traditional practice times, some practices may go past
this 6 p.m. time. The occurrence of the Clinic remaining open past the
6 p.m. time is at the discretion of the certified athletic trainer
covering that particular sport.
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