Athletic Trainers' Experiences Developing and Maintaining Contemporary Expertise

Document Type

Poster

Abstract

Context: The Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE) implemented new accreditation standards following the shift of professional athletic training education to the entry-level master’s degree. The 2020 standards require both educators and preceptors affiliated with CAATE-accredited professional programs to identify an area of contemporary expertise. To ensure educators and preceptors are exposing students to the breadth and depth of content areas in athletic training practice, development and maintenance of their identified area of contemporary expertise is imperative. ​Objective(s): To explore educators' and preceptors' experiences with contemporary expertise. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: Online survey with open-ended questions. Participants: 534 ATs accessed the survey with 372 complete survey responses (70% completion rate; 113 educators, 259 preceptors). 108 educators and 195 preceptors reported they have an identified area of contemporary expertise and were included for data analysis. ​Data Collection and Analysis: A 15-item cross sectional online survey comprised of 10 demographic items and five open-ended questions was used. Descriptive statistics were conducted to characterize participant demographics and familiarity with contemporary expertise. Data analysis was guided by consensual qualitative research with a three-person data analysis team. A four-phase progression was used to code open-ended responses by the research team. An external auditor confirmed data representation and accuracy. ​Results: The results of this study share the familiarity of contemporary expertise amongst educators and preceptors associated with CAATE accredited athletic training education programs and the impact it has on their practice. This is shared through various activities and resources accessible for athletic trainers. However, the results also showed the hardships on maintaining and developing expertise based on numerous barriers and conflicts with current certification expectations. ​Conclusion: As contemporary expertise becomes more familiar amongst preceptors and educators, the BOC and CAATE should outline the intent of continuing education and how it relates to contemporary expertise. Additionally, programs should allow administrators or employers to evaluate how they can support faculty and preceptors in maintaining contemporary expertise. Programmatic approaches to aid preceptors with contemporary expertise should also be evaluated.

Publication Date

Spring 2022

Comments

Poster presented at ATSU-ASHS DAT Spring - 2022. This is a Kubify based presentation hosted at https://api.ltb.io/show/ABLEY It includes a video presentation, references, a PowerPoint presentation, and summary poster.

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