4/28/2018 0 Comments Reflective Journal #15This week, I was gaining clinical experience at a softball game. We were relocated to the field at Abingdon High School because the game was later in the evening and lights were going to be needed to finish the game. We were about half way through the first game of the double header, and there was an opportunity for a double play. An ball was hit to an infielder, the infielder threw through the ball to the third baseman, and then the third baseman made a throw to first. The throw to first base soared over the first baseman’s head because the third baseman experienced an injury at the end of the throw. The runner from second took a late slide into third base, slid up over the base, and took out the third baseman’s ankle. The player hit the ground and started rolling because of the pain. Melissa and I ran onto the field and saw that there was an obvious deformity of her ankle. Part of her ankle popped back into place on its own, but the ankle was still extremely displaced. Her foot looked as if it was dangling from the rest of her leg. I ran back to the dugout, grabbed melissa’s kit, and starting pulling out supplies to begin splinting the ankle. It was obvious that her ankle was at the least dislocated, but also a possible break. The ankle and lower leg were stabilized while the SAM splint was applied. I wrapped the ace wrap around the SAM splint to secure the splint, and then we lowered her leg and waited for EMS to arrive.
The x-ray from the hospital showed that her fibula was broken along with her medial malleolus. Up until this point, the most serious injury that I had seen during clinical was an ACL tear. This experience truly drove home how a calm disposition during emergency situations is crucial for the athlete and the mental processes for the clinician. After I saw her ankle, I had just a moment where I wanted to freak out, but instincts quickly set in. I knew that it was important to stay calm so that I could think clearly and keep the patient calm. This week, I received approximately 25 masteries. I did multiple scenarios with my preceptors, and also was able to receive mastery from therapeutic interventions that I performed in the clinic
0 Comments
4/28/2018 0 Comments Reflective Journal #14I do believe that my communication skills have gotten better this semester! Not only do I feel like they have improved with the team that I am placed with, but I feel that they have improved with all of the athletes that are in the clinic. I have been able to create much deeper relationships, especially with the softball team, through clinical experience. One example of this is a softball player who I somewhat knew prior to being placed with the softball team. I used to have classes with this player, but we have not had one together for about a year. This player has recently went through a traumatic death in her family, and she has been struggling with healing from that loss. She was never hesitant about mentioning the death to me, but she has opened up even more since I have been placed with her team. We have had quite a few conversation about this person in her life, and she has been able to open up to me about how she has been feeling, which included confusion, shock, guilt, responsibility for the death, but also happiness because she knows her loved in is in a better place. This was a big turning point in athletic training for me personally. I have often thought about being able to be a person that an athlete could turn to for issues that aren’t always physical, but I have never been able to practice it to this extent. The athlete admitted to me that she enjoys talking about her loved one, but sometimes feels as if she can’t talk about the loss to friends because she’s does not want pity. She also feels as if she can’t express her feelings to other family members because they do not want to speak of the event. It brought my understanding of the weight of this profession to a new level.
Additionally, I feel that I was able to improve my communication skills with my supervising preceptor. My schedule for tennis has been extremely sporadic, and it has caused changes to occur often in my availability for clinical experience. I have had to continually communicate about these changes, and also have discussed other opportunities outside of practices to receive clinical hours. Even though the cause of this increase in communication wasn’t ideal, it was beneficial in the grand scheme of things. This week, I was able to finish my attempts in my packet. 4/9/2018 0 Comments Reflective Journal #13I think for this journal I will start with the more negative and end on the positive. My biggest weakness in regards to my major is probably my lack of passion for the major. When I first began the major, I was very eager to be involved, and my passion was through the roof. However, as my desire for different career paths have increased, my passion for athletic training has decreased. I still very much enjoy the material that we learn, but being in the clinic has become more of a perceived responsibility than a potential learning experience even though I am still learning while I’m in the clinic. I am unsure about how to change this perception that has weaved it’s way into my academic life. I would love to still have the same passion that I had when I began in the program, and i do still enjoy helping the athletes, but I feel like I am at a standstill. Another weakness that has made its way into my life this semester was my inability to plan efficiently. My planner has slowly made its way out of the picture when it should have been becoming more important. Through this, I have missed important meetings or forgotten about other assignments or studying. This is solely a lack of discipline that I take responsibility for. To fix this, I just need to be more intentional about planning, whether it be through my planner or another resource like Google Calendar. I believe that I have mentioned this weakness before, but I believe I have a weakness in rehab progress. I can continue to improve in this domain by practicing with real rehabs, speaking with preceptors, and studying example protocols.
On the other hand, I believe that one of my strengths is interpersonal skills. I love making new relationships and getting on the same level as others. I feel like I can easily relate with most other people, which I find helpful during treatments with those who I do not know very well. Additionally, I feel like strength and conditioning aspects of athletic training is a strength for me (no pun intended). I have always been very interested in strength and conditioning, and I have a fairly strong background in regards to proper form for exercises. I can continue to get better by playing into my strengths and continuing to pursue knowledge in those areas. This week, I received attempts from Beth’s PBL, and received attempts while talking with Chaypin during the tennis match. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
April 2019
Categories |