EXETER, NH – It’s no secret that sport-related concussions can affect an athlete’s sport participation and academic success. Here at Access Sports Medicine & Orthopaedics, we see many student athlete concussion patients who are student athletes just itching to get back in the game, but need to take it easy in order for a successful recovery.
In an ideal setting, a concussion specialist would work closely with school Athletic Trainers to assess patients and determine their recovery and return to sport schedule. At Access Acceleration, we have Athletic Trainers in eight Seacoast high schools who work closely with concussion specialist Dr. Kevin Heaton in order to determine an athlete’s safe return to play when injury occurs. Nicole Spaulding ATC, MSM, NHLAT, CES, CPT-NASM is the Director of Athletic Training at Access Sports Medicine & Orthopaedics. She oversees all of the Athletic Trainers at area Seacoast high schools. She believes Access sets an example for other Athletic Trainer Programs.
“We have a protocol that others should follow. Most ATC’s don’t use a concussion specialist that they work closely with [like Dr. Heaton],” she said. “I believe we are the best at ‘return to sport’ and ‘return to learn!’ With Dr. Heaton, tools such as ImPact and our outstanding athletic trainers, our student athletes have top notch care.”
To learn more about Access Sports Medicine’s Athletic Training program, click here.