Volume 12: Issue 1

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Kimberly S. Peer, EdD, ATC, FNATA

Kent State University

SENIOR ASSOCIATE EDITORS

David Berry, PhD, ATC

Saginaw Valley State University

Matthew Kutz, PhD, ATC

Bowling Green State University

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

Kirk J. Armstrong, EdD, LAT, ATC

Georgia College & State University

Abbey Dondanville, EdD, ATC

Piedmont University

Ashley Goodman, PhD, LAT, ATC, CPed

Appalachian State University

Michael Hudson, PhD, ATC

Missouri State University

Blaine Long, PhD, ATC

Central Michigan University

Stacy Walker, PhD, ATC

Ball State University

EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS

Kirk Armstrong, EdD, ATC

Georgia College & State University

Stacy Walker, PhD, ATC

Ball State University

CONSULTING EDITORS

Kenneth L.

Context:

Sexual harassment is a growing concern in higher education. Athletic training students should feel safe in their programs, whether in the didactic or clinical setting. Though the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education creates standards to keep the students safe, there are none regarding sexual harassment training for athletic training students.

Objective:

To determine the rate of sexual harassment training in athletic training students, with a secondary purpose of determining, if indeed sexual harassment training occurs, whether it is associated with the college or university or is offered through an outside entity.

Design:

Survey.

Setting:

Online.

Patients or Other Participants:

Eight hundred eighty-five athletic training students (613 females, 272 males).

Main Outcome Measure(s):

Data were analyzed through SurveyMonkey, and the statistical software R. Frequency counts and percentages were determined. A Fisher exact test was run to determine if there was a relationship between the athletic training student's current knowledge and whether the athletic training student had received harassment training.

Results:

The study found that more than 50% of male and female athletic training students had not recieved sexual harassment training, whereas 75% of all respondents stated that they knew what resources were available to report issues of sexual harrassment. The odds of a person not knowing what resources were available to report harassment and not having training were 6 times the odds of those who had training and did not know what resources were available.

Conclusions:

Our study emphasizes the need for sexual harassment training in athletic training programs. Athletic training students need to know what sexual harassment is and who to report it to. Additionally, they should not feel threatened by reporting any instances of harassment.

Context:

Athletic trainers are encouraged to work collaboratively with other health care professionals to improve patient outcomes. Interprofessional education (IPE) experiences for practicing clinicians should be developed to improve interprofessional collaborative practice postcertification. An outcome measure, such as the modified Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (mRIPLS), could be used to determine the clinician's attitudes toward IPE and to determine the effectiveness of the experience.

Objective:

To determine select psychometric properties of the mRIPLS in practicing athletic trainers.

Design:

Cross-sectional.

Setting:

Online survey.

Patients or Other Participants:

A survey was sent to 2000 randomly selected practicing athletic trainers. A total of 173 (8.7%) participated, and complete data were available for 145 (7.3%).

Intervention(s):

The survey consisted of a demographic section and the mRIPLS. The mRIPLS consists of 23 statements scored on a 5-point Likert scale divided into 3 subscales: teamwork and collaboration (TWC), patient-centeredness (PC), and sense of professional identity (PI).

Main Outcome Measure(s):

Cronbach α was used to examine the internal consistency. The presence of a ceiling effect (>50% respondents selected the highest score) was determined for each question by examining means and percentages.

Results:

The overall internal consistency of the mRIPLS was acceptable (α = 0.872) along with the TWC (α = 0.917) and PC (α = 0.862) subscales. The PI subscale (α = 0.632) was not acceptable. A ceiling effect was identified for 10 questions, and ≥70% of respondents selected highly agree or agree for 22 questions.

Conclusions:

While the mRIPLS demonstrated overall acceptable internal consistency, all 3 subscales did not. In addition, the presence of a ceiling effect makes the use of this instrument as an outcome measure trivial. Therefore, the current version of the mRIPLS may not be the best outcome to assess openness for IPE or to measure the effectiveness of IPE experiences in practicing athletic trainers.

Context:

The Examination of Professional Degree Level document presented to the National Athletic Trainers' Association Board of Directors states that research in athletic training education has not investigated differences in the critical-thinking skills of professional athletic training students.

Objective:

Investigate the differences in critical thinking and other demographic variables across first-year athletic training students enrolled in professional bachelor's- and master's-degree programs.

Design:

Quantitative study.

Setting:

District 10 athletic training programs.

Patients or Other Participants:

Students (N = 40) enrolled within their first 6 months of a professional athletic training program were asked to complete the California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST). Twelve first-year master's-degree students (8 female, 4 male) and 28 bachelor's-degree students (18 female, 10 male) completed the CCTST (age = 20.73 ± 3.09 years).

Main Outcome Measure(s):

Athletic training students in District 10 were asked to complete the CCTST during the first 6 months of their respective programs. Independent t tests were used to evaluate the difference in critical-thinking scores between professional master's- and bachelor's-degree athletic training students. A 1-way analysis of variance was conducted to determine differences in critical-thinking skills with regard to gender, age, and parental educational level.

Results:

There were no statistically significant differences in critical-thinking skills between bachelor's- and master's-degree athletic training students enrolled in a professional athletic training program (P = .991). Additionally, there were no statistically significant differences in critical-thinking skills with regard to gender (P = .156), age (P = .410), or parental education level (P = .156).

Conclusions:

The results suggest master's students do not have greater critical-thinking skills than professional bachelor's students before engaging in athletic training education. Therefore, as the professional degree of athletic training transitions to the graduate level, athletic training educators may need to investigate and use pedagogical practices that will graduate critically thinking athletic trainers.

Reliability and Validity of the Functional Assessment of Neurocognition in Sport (FANS): A Paradigm Shift in Post-Concussion Return-to-Sport Decision-Making

Landon B. LempkePhD, ATC,

Benjamin L. BrettPhD, and

Douglas P. TerryPhD,ABPP