Sports Medicine Clinic Attracts Area Coaches
Nearly 30 Southwest Washington coaches attended the Third Annual Sports Injury Seminar on March 21st at Pacific Surgical Institute. The event was co-sponsored by Longview Orthopedic Associates (LOA) and Longview Physical & Sports Therapy (LPST) and included a wide range of information about the prevention and diagnosis of athletic injuries and related problems.
Toutle Lake High School coach Marcus Hynning tapes Kathy Cooper's ankle while Mark Benson (left) and Don Merzoian (right) provide encouragement.
Presenters included Dr. William Turner (staph infections); Dr. Brian Hoyt (neck injuries); Dr. Jon Kretzler (heat stress prevention); physical therapist and certified athletic trainer Dave Knoeppel (lower-extremity soft tissue injuries); Dr. Richard Kirkpatrick (eating disorders); Dr. Bruce Blackstone (tibial stress fractures); and certified athletic trainer Ed Earnest (sports conditioning).
LPST staff members Earnest, Knoeppel, George Palmer, Beth Soltero, and Cristy Auckland conducted four hands-on workshops: taping and wrapping; lower extremity stretching; evaluation of soft tissue injuries; and Theraband resistance training.
“It was a great clinic, said Wahkiakum High School basketball coach Steve McClain. “The presentations were excellent and added to our knowledge about how to help prevent injuries.”
Stretching is key to injury prevention
Don Merzoian, volleyball and softball coach at Toutle Lake High School, called the clinic “a great way to help us ensure the safety of our athletes and to stay current about new techniques.”
Knoeppel, co-owner of LPST, organized the event and was pleased with the turnout. “We even had a participant from Aberdeen this year,” he said.
Knoeppel noted that few high schools have a certified athletic trainer on staff, which puts a great deal of pressure on coaches to prevent and properly assess injuries.
“Our purpose has been to give coaches some tools to provide appropriate immediate care and the knowledge to know what to do next,” Knoeppel said. “In addition, we attempt to cover current and recurrent issues that can affect sports performance, including eating disorders, supplements, MRSA (staph infection), conditioning, proper stretching, and taping.”
Knoeppel discuss lower-extremity, soft-tissue injuries
