Article 34 of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes entitling them to perform the functions and duties
of an athletic trainer. In order to be compliant as a licensed athletic trainer (LAT) at an NCHSAA
member school an individual must provide their active NCBATE license number, complete the
Gfeller-Waller Athletic Personnel Concussion Statement Form and sign an attestation statement.
(1)
Athletic training encompasses the prevention, examination, diagnosis, treatment, and re-
habilitation of emergent, acute, or chronic injuries and medical conditions. Athletic training
is recognized by the American Medical Association (AMA), Health Resources Services Ad-
ministration (HRSA) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as
an allied health care profession.
(2)
Athletic trainers are highly qualified, multi-skilled health care professionals who collabo-
rate with physicians to provide preventative services, emergency care, clinical diagnosis,
therapeutic intervention and rehabilitation of injuries and medical conditions. Athletic
trainers work under the direction of a physician as prescribed by state licensure statutes. In
North Carolina, an athletic trainer is a person who, under a written protocol with a physi-
cian licensed under Article 1 of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes and filed with the North
Carolina Medical Board, carries out the practice of care, prevention, and rehabilitation of in-
juries incurred by athletes, and who, in carrying out these functions, may use physical mo-
dalities, including heat, light, sound, cold, electricity, or mechanical devices related to reha-
bilitation and treatment.
(b)
First Responders (FR) – If not an LAT, an FR must meet the requirements of ATHL-016, Section 2.
The NCHSAA recommends that the courses taken to satisfy those requirements include some hands-
on, in-person skill presentation and evaluation, regardless if part of the course is online or entirely
in-person.
(1)
Any certification required for an FR must not lapse while the person is serving in the role of
FR.
(2)
FRs must renew their training consistent with the terms of any course or certification taken
to satisfy the requirements of ATHL-016, Section 2. For example, the NFHS “Concussion in
Sports” course is valid for 365 days, and must not lapse while the person is serving in the
role of FR, but must be taken annually before the first practice date of the school year.
(3)
Original documentation of annually completed continuing education (“CE”), including cur
rent and expired CPR/AED and First Aid cards, must be retained as proof of eligibility to
serve as a FR.
(4)
A first suggested option to satisfy the 10-hour CE requirement in ATHL-016, Section 2.e is
attending the Athletic Injury Management Courses offered in conjunction with the North
Carolina Coaches Association (NCCA) Summer Clinic. If a FR is unable to attend the NCCA
Summer Clinic the NCHSAA recommends two additional options to satisfy this requirement.
(A)
A second CE option is taking online courses offered by the NFHS:
*Emergency Action Planning in Athletics
*ACL Injury Prevention
*Appearance and Performance Enhancing Drugs and Substance
*Heat Illness Prevention
*Introduction to Pitch Smart *Sports Nutrition
*Student Mental Health and Suicide Prevention
*Sudden Cardiac Arrest
*The Collapsed Athlete
*Understanding Vaping and E-Cigarettes.
(B)
Courses offered by the Gatorade Sport Science Institute is a third CE option that is
also on-line based.
NOTE: CE courses are valid for 365 days from date of completion, unless otherwise indicat-
ed, and must not lapse while serving in the role as a FR.
(5)
The NCHSAA’s expectation is that the FR should provide the same care that any reasonable
and prudent individual would consistent with their training in the same situation. In
all instances, the FR should provide only the type of emergency care for which the FR is
trained.
(6)
“Games,” as used in ATHL-016, Section 4, includes home and away games.
(A)
A licensed athletic trainer or a first responder must be physically present if any pro-
tective equipment (helmets or shoulder pads) is worn by student-athletes partici-
pating in football skill development during the school year.
(B)
A licensed athletic trainer or first responder must physically attend all summer foot-
ball 7-on-7 events and must be physically present at all times in any competition
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