High School Athletic Trainers Attend Heat Illness Training

Aug. 5, 2022, 5 p.m. ·

Heat Illness Training
High school athletic trainers and emergency response personnel take part in a heat illness simulation at Seacrest Field (Photo by Tanner Dykstra, Nebraska Public Media)

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More than 50 high school athletic trainers gathered at Seacrest Field in Lincoln on Friday morning for training and simulations on heat illness in student athletes. Crystal Kjar, head athletic trainer for Lincoln Southwest High School, said collaboration was key for the event.

“Our goal with this was to provide training that wasn’t so individual. We’re all doing it anyway, so how can we come together as a group of athletic trainers and accomplish the same thing on a grander scale?” she said.

Trainers and emergency response personnel ran drills for heat illness treatment like ice immersion, as well as spinal football injuries. Lincoln Southwest athletic director Mark Armstrong said this is done to prevent serious incidents, recalling the tragic death of an Omaha high school football player last year.

“If that’s not a wake up call to administrators, coaches, and athletics trainers I don’t know what else is. Knowing that it could happen to any of us at any time, these are things we have to do to be prepared,” he said.