What is an Athletic Trainer??

I was looking at my bibliography from earlier in the year, to see if there was anything that might be useful, and the first source I saw was http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos294.htm. This is a site from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. It's all about Athletic Trainers, so I figured it couldn't hurt to look at it and see what they had to say. This is what I found.

Nature

Athletic Trainers prevent and treat injuries for people of all ages. They work with anybody from athletes to industrial workers. They specialize in the prevention, diagnosis, assessment, treatment and rehabilitation of muscle and bone injuries and illnesses. They are the first responding when there is an injury and as such, must be able to recognize, evaluate and assess injuries and provide immediate care when needed.
Athletic Trainers help prevent injuries by educating people on how to reduce their risk of injuries by advising them on proper use of equipment, proper stretching and home exercises. They also help by applying braces or taping athletes to make them more stable.
What Athletic Trainers do is mainly determined by who they are hired. Most Athletic Trainers are hired by a physician, so many spend their time indoors working 40-50 hours per week. However, some Athletic Trainers work as many as 12 hours per day or more, depending on what they do. It is possible, if the trainer works with a collegiate or professional sport that they spend as many as 14 hours per day working.

Qualifications

A Bachelors' degree is usually the minimum degree required to be an Athletic Trainer. However, many Athletic Trainers hold a Masters' or Doctorates' degree. In 2009, 47 states required Athletic Trainers to be licensed. In 2009, there were about 350 accredited collegiate programs in the country. According to the NATA (National Athletic Trainers Association), about 70 percent of Athletic Trainers have at least a Masters' degree.
In order to be certified, one has to take a Board of Certification exam, which is a very rigorous test. The 4 places where certification is not needed (but may prove helpful) are Washington D.C., Alaska, California and West Virginia.
Because of the fact that Athletic Trainers deal not only with athletes, but a variety of people, they should have good communication and people skills. They should be able to manage difficult situations and the stress that comes with them. They should be organized (we'll have to work on that part), have good time management (haha), be inquisitive and have a strong desire to help people. (hey, half ain't bad)

Employment

In 2008, Athletic Trainers held 16,300 jobs all over the country. While most jobs are related to sports, a growing number are not. Many are now found in settings like office buildings, industrial factories, etc. About 39 percent were found in public and private educational services-primarily in high school and college settings. Another 38 percent worked in health care in jobs in hospitals and offices of physicians or practitioners. About 13 percent worked in fitness and recreational sports centers. Lastly, about 5 percent worked in spectator sports.
(Note. This does not add up to 100 percent)

Job Outlook

Employment for Athletic Trainers is projected to increase 37 percent from 2008 to 2018. This is higher than the average for all occupations. This is because of their role in injury prevention and decreasing the cost of health care. Jobs in school settings will be available, but there will be competition in areas like college or spectator sports.
Job growth will be centered in the health care industry, like in hospitals or physicians offices. However, growth in college teams or sports teams will be slower because most already have a complete Athletic Training staff.
As the population ages, it is expected that more elderly people will be turning to Athletic Trainers because they can help to decrease the cost of health care. In some states, there is an effort to have a licensed Athletic Trainer on hand to work with student athletes, so that will open some jobs as well.
Some trainers will be called upon to work in more work-related places to cut down on the costs of health care to the owner. For instance, they may be hired to increase the fitness and performance of policemen and firefighters.

Earnings

Most Athletic Trainers work full time and receive benefits. The salary of an Athletic Trainer depends on experience and job responsibilities. In May of 2008, the median wage for an Athletic Trainer was $39,640. The middle 50 percent earned between $32,070 and $49,250. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $23,450 while the highest 10 percent earned above $60,960.