With fall sports activities wrapped up and in the books, Sarah Koehler, the certified athletic trainer at Ashland High School, is finally able to enjoy a little downtime between sports seasons. No longer the new face cruising the sidelines in a golf cart, Koehler is now a familiar presence at AHS as the winter sports season gets underway.
Koehler started working at the high school back in August just as fall sports were getting into full swing. As an employee of Essentia Health, she also maintains clinic hours as part of her job, but you’re most likely to spot her on duty behind the scenes at Oredocker sporting events, tending to the needs and injury concerns of local student-athletes.
Relocating to Ashland after graduation wasn’t too much of a stretch for Koehler, who spent her undergraduate and graduate school years in Duluth.
“I completed both my Bachelors of Science in Exercise Physiology and my Masters of Science in Athletic Training at the College of St. Scholastica,” Koehler said during a Facebook interview. “I have always been interested in health care and athletics, so athletic training was a natural fit.”
One of the biggest concerns for athletes, coaches, parents and medical professionals these days is head injuries, and for an athletic trainer, concussion protocols and safety concerning head injuries is of paramount importance.
“It is extremely important that a medical professional has the final say in returning student-athletes to play from any type of injury,” Koehler said. “Wisconsin concussion law requires student-athletes to be released by a licensed health care provider with training and experience in evaluating and managing concussions. That usually narrows it down to certified athletic trainers and physicians.
“Athletic trainers work under the direction of a physician, and I discuss all concussion cases with my supervising physician before returning a student-athlete. If my physician does not believe they are ready for activity for contact yet, they are not released. Usually my physician makes the release while I manage the care, unless additional treatment by another healthcare professional is needed.”
Koehler is pleased with the trend toward greater awareness of the dangers of head injuries in recent years, but there are still some aspects of the issue that demand greater attention, or perhaps a change in the culture.
“I think the awareness of concussions in recent years has helped with the general recognition of concussions as injuries, but the seriousness of concussions is sometimes still not realized by athletes, parents and coaches,” Koehler said. “There are still athletes who try to hide or downplay their symptoms because they don’t want to be kept out of play or they want to return to play sooner than they should. It is crucial that athletes are completely honest about their symptoms with their health care professionals, parents and coaches.
“A concussion is a brain injury and should always be taken very seriously. Your brain controls everything you do. If someone is released before they are fully healed and they sustain a second blow, they are at risk for Second Impact Syndrome, which can lead to permanent brain damage and death.”
There are also some common misconceptions about head injuries, such as the notion that a better helmet could eliminate the risk of concussion, that, according to Koehler, simply aren’t true.
“While a properly fitting helmet will prevent skull fractures and will dissipate the force the wearer sustains, lowering the risk of a concussion, it will not prevent a concussion,” Koehler said. “Your head does not even have to hit any outside object to sustain a concussion. A forceful movement forward (think of whiplash) can cause your brain to move and hit the inside of your skull, causing a concussion.
“I like to think of a head as an egg. The shell of the egg is your skull, and the yoke is your brain. You can excessively pad the egg so that the shell does not break when dropped, but if you shake the egg you can still feel the yoke inside moving around. Similarly, a perfectly fitting helmet can prevent skull fractures and diminish the force that the head feels, lowering the risk of injury, but it has no effect on the brain moving inside of the skull.”
Aside from being qualified as medical professionals, athletic trainers must also be relatable and able to work constructively with student-athletes and coaches on an individual basis. These traits come naturally to Koehler, and she seems to be fitting right in and enjoying her role at AHS.
“I love being an athletic trainer,” Koehler said. “In this position, there is something new every day. Some people think of athletic trainers as the people that do ankle taping. [But] there is so much more to the job. You have to have a B.S. or M.S. in athletic training, pass a test by the Board of Certification, continuously take ‘continuing education’ courses to maintain your certification, and be registered (in Minnesota) or licensed (in Wisconsin) in the state that you work in order to practice as an athletic trainer.
“As medical professionals, athletic trainers are often the first on the scene in the event of an injury. We do emergency care, injury evaluation and treatment, injury prevention and rehabilitation. No matter how prepared you are, you can’t really predict when injuries will occur, and no two injuries are identical, so you always have to be on your toes.”
Even when not on the job, staying on her toes is a pretty normal routine for Koehler, an avid silent sports enthusiast.
“I was involved in many sports growing up, but during my undergrad years I was part of my school’s cross country team, Nordic skiing team and cycling club,” Koehler said. “So on my free time, you can usually find me on the trails skiing, running or cycling.”
Luckily for Kohler, the Tri-County Corridor provides ample opportunity to get out and stay active.
“The main trail that goes through town is pretty cool,” Koehler said. “As noted above, I like to run and bike, so of course I spend time there.”
As far as interest in professional sports, Koehler remains devoted to the big clubs from her home state.
“In the area of more mainstream professional sports, I love following the Twins and the Wild,” Koehler said. “I am from Minnesota and will always cheer for my Minnesota teams!”
On top of everything else, given that this pro-Minnesota sentiment is shared by many in the Chequamegon Bay area, it’s pretty clear that Koehler is the right person for the job.
ORIGINAL ARtiCLE:
http://www.apg-wi.com/ashland_daily_press/sports/high_school/koehler-enjoying-role-as-athletic-trainer/article_431b105e-94a3-11e5-925f-6f9a122f96d7.html