Blog by Kimber Rodgers

I had a patient this week that really made me think.  He has a low grade ankle sprain… something I’m sure most athletic trainers deal with on a weekly basis.  His strength and ROM were normal, but he was not able to complete functional tests. 

I will admit… I don’t like to be wrong.  I’m competitive and I like to be right.  But with this patient, I was at a loss.  I threw everything I had in my arsenal of tricks at him.  But it seemed no matter what I did, he didn’t show improvement. 

I woke up yesterday and remembered: an Airrosti Certified Chiropractor, who moved to my area this summer, met with me in late July and offered his services and conveyed his interest in treating athletes.  So, I called him; I explained the situation, gave him some history on the patient, and he happened to have an appointment available that morning.  With a few tests and a couple of new corrective exercises, he discovered a muscle strain secondary to the ankle sprain I had not even thought to consider.  After one treatment, the patient’s pain was 60% better and his functional status was dramatically improved.

I am so fortunate to have such a talented group of health care professionals in my area!  I would definitely encourage everyone out there to use all of the tools you have at your disposal.  Whether it’s an Airrosti Certified Provider, sports massage therapist, someone with certifications in manual therapy or other alternative techniques, etc. make contact with other healthcare professionals in your area and develop relationships with them.   Those relationships can help improve patient outcomes and help us to become better athletic trainers by learning new “tools” from other healthcare professionals.