News from our District Director
Katie Walsh Flanagan
ATs Care
This peer-to-peer committee is unlike any other NATA or MAATA committee. Volunteers are chosen to go through two days of training to provide psychological assistance to peer athletic trainers following a critical incident. There are usually no regular meetings or conference calls. MAATA hopes to have state-based teams (committees) that are all trained to respond to critical incidents. We are looking for experienced athletic trainers, who plan to stay local (in state) for five or more years, and who have a strong desire to make a difference. Training can be costly, and the states are doing the best they can to assist with the funding. The first training opportunity will be at the May MAATA Symposium. Those interested, please send a letter of interest specific to the ATs Care Committee and vita, along with your BOC, NPI and state regulation (if applicable) numbers to Lori Bristow: D3sectry@gmail.com
Committee Liaisons
As per our Constitution (6.5.2) on our website, each standing MAATA committee will have a state president as a liaison to it. Our By-laws currently have a limited list of District committees, but the By-Laws do point out the committee charge and obligations. The specific state president is to be on all conference calls, emails, and communications, so he/she can report back to the District Council on any issues that might need our attention. Liaisons do not have voting privileges on these committees. The state Presidents volunteered to be liaisons to the following committees:
Sheila Gordon (SC) Young Professionals Committee
Sean Dash (DC) Honors and Awards
Matt Gage (VA) Research and Grants
Scott Barringer (NC) Secondary Schools
Nick Pitruzzella (MD) Annual Symposium Committee
Drew Mason (WV) Scholarship Committee
Welcome Lindsey Schroeder as the District 3 incoming representative to the Education Advancement Committee. Lindsey will shadow Melissa Snyder this year.
Government Affairs News
The NATA Government Affairs Committee has completed its review of Legislative Grant Application. With discretionary grant requests from 23 states totaling over $700,000.00 in addition to 7 matching grant requests, each application was given careful consideration. The GAC worked diligently to allocate funds in accordance with legislative priorities while remaining fiscally responsible with the funds entrusted to the GAC by the NATA Board and planning for possible unforeseen emergencies which could require additional funding. A special thank you to Brian Curless, our District 3 Governmental Affairs Chairman who worked hard on this committee to get the funds out to these deserving, hardworking states.
Specifically, Congratulations and good work to:
West Virginia (thanks to Drew Mason) received a $25,695,000 grant to support legislative efforts.
Maryland (thanks to Ed Strapp) received a $18,000 grant to support legislative efforts.
Virginia (thanks to Michael Puglia) received a $5,000.00 grant to support legislative efforts.
D.C. (thanks to Mike Walker) received a $ 18,247.50 grant to support legislative efforts.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!
Katie
Renew your NATA membership
The member only benefits include: 10 Free CEU Credits ($150 value), Career Development and Community enhancement with discounted registration for events. Installment plans are available!
BOC CEUs due
Do not forget that December 31st is the LAST day to submit your Continuing Education to the Board of Certification. Also, since the 31st is a Sunday, the BOC office will not be open, so get your questions answered the week prior.
MAATA Honors and Awards
Bob Casmus
Thank you to our members who submitted nominations for our District III Honors & Awards. Nominators are asked to encourage and assist their nominees with completing their honors & awards application packet as needed. We ask that our nominees please take the time to fully complete their honors and awards packet and to submit all materials by the November 30th deadline. If a nominee has any questions or concerns – please feel free to contact me at any time.
Bob Casmus, M.S., ATC
Chair – MAATA Honors & Awards
Robertcasmus@gmail.com
MAATA PAC
Robert Cable
I trust that everyone has had a healthy and safe fall athletic season. I know that you all have been very busy getting your Fall Sports through their seasons and possibly into the playoffs and at the same time dealing with the beginning of Winter Sports and the challenges that they present.
I am once again writing you to request your assistance in helping to support the legislative efforts of the National Athletic Trainers Association by supporting the NATA-PAC. The NATA Political Action Committee (NATAPAC) is the only dedicated political organization intent on serving the profession of athletic training through legislative progress. PACs are designed to be a method of pooling campaign contributions from members and donating those funds to campaigns for or against candidates. By supporting the PAC, you help your state organization to maintain a presence in your state capital as well as helping the NATA to maintain a presence in Washington, DC. This is vital in our continued development as a professional. The PAC helps to educate lawmakers in what we do and how our services can be utilized to their fullest extent. I am continually astonished by the number of individuals and organizations that still believe that “trainers” are the ones that provide towels and water during timeouts. They have no idea of the educational background and practical education that goes into what we do on a daily basis. The PAC is instrumental in educating these individuals and assisting these individuals in educating the general public as to our importance in the athlete's healthcare.
There are several ways that you can assist the PAC. The first and probably most efficient is to sign up for a monthly donation that is automatically added to your credit card. This way, twelve $10 monthly installments turn into a $120 yearly donation. $10 a month is hardly noticeable on a credit card statement. But, $120 a year donation is a major donation to the NCATA – PAC. At this time of the year, probably the most efficient way for you to donate is by donating through dues renewal. With NATA dues renewal, you can select a contribution under “PAC Contribution” at checkout. Your donation will help support the common legislative strategy that benefits every athletic trainer as well as their patient population by working to elect members of Congress who are supportive of the athletic training profession.
However, you decide to do it, please donate to the NATA – PAC. Help us help you. All 10 districts have taken on the challenge of raising $6000 per district during the upcoming year to support the PAC. Because this will be my last year as a member of the PAC, I want to meet this goal In the worst way. I hope that you will join me as we set out to help the NATA educate the masses as to what we can do and at the same time move the profession forward.
I also want to remind you that the NATA’s annual Capitol Hill Day is right around the corner. As soon as I have confirmed dates I'll make sure that I pass them along each of you. I hope that we can get more attendance from the MAATA membership, after all, Washington DC is in District III and we always want to try to make sure that we are represented well. I can tell you that it is a great experience being on Capitol Hill and having opportunity to speak with our lawmakers and let them know what we’re doing and how they can help us.
In closing I want to thank everyone in advance for their donation. Remember, NO AMOUNT IS TOO SMALL!!!!! With the membership that we have in District III, if we can get everyone to donate just $5.00, we will be well on our way to meeting our $6000 goal for the upcoming year. I look forward to seeing you and speaking with each of you in DC in February and I also look forward to seeing each of you at our new meeting site in Ocean City, Maryland in May.
For more information or to contribute outside of your dues renewal, go to http://natapac.org. Any questions, please contact Me, Robert J. Cable MS, ATC at rcable@fairmontstate.edu
2018 MAATA Annual Symposium
Kimberly Pritchard
2018 Annual Symposium Update - Pre-Conference Workshops
Join us in Ocean City, MD May 18-20 for the MAATA Annual Symposium. The program will offer two pre-conference workshops. NATA ATs Care, a peer-to-peer support program, will offer a 13-hour workshop with training in Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) and mental health first aid will be held on May 17-18 with limited registration. Foot Management, Inc. will sponsor a 6-hour workshop, "Assessment, Treatment, and Orthotic Intervention for the Management of Sports-Related Injuries," with limited registration on May 18. MAATA intends to seek BOC approval to provide this workshop as evidence-based practice continuing education. Additionally, the Educational Program Committee expects to provide up to 5 EBP CEUs during the primary program.
PEC
Meredith Petschauer
- The PEC would like to invite anyone from our district to submit an idea for a teaching tip. To see some of the past tips they can be found HERE. If you think you have a great tip for your fellow educators please send an email to Meredith Petschauer mbusby@email.unc.edu.
- The PEC is also working on resources for professional readiness and transitioning your program to the new degree. If you have expertise in either of these areas that you would like to share, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Meredith Petschauer, PhD, LAT, ATC
mbusby@email.unc.edu
Public Relations
Christina Benson
Maryland
The MATA is hosting a legislative Town Hall meeting Friday November 17th to discuss initiatives the Governmental Affairs Committee (GAC) is taking to help advance the MD state practice act for the 2018 Maryland General Assembly. The MATA lobbyist will give a brief presentation followed by a word from the newly hired PR consultant who is assisting specifically with these legislative advances. The GAC will then present on the specifics and goals of these new legislative initiatives - the largest legislative update since initial licensure. Event will be live-streamed through Facebook and via live-Tweets (@Maryland_ATs) so tune in to see what the plans are for the future of the athletic training profession in Maryland!
Virginia
During the weekend of October 20th-22nd, thirteen students from the James Madison University Athletic Training Program had the opportunity to volunteer at the Marine Corps Marathon, and attend the IIRM Sports Medicine Conference Series in Washington D.C. The students were placed at three different medical tents in the post-race event area, where they were able to assist runners in need of medical attention. The IIRM Sports Medicine Conference Series was highlighted by multiple speakers including, Douglas J. Casa, PhD, ATC, FNAK, FACSM, FNATA, and Chris Troyanos, ATC, and provided the students with the opportunity to practice scenarios related to heat stroke, hyponatremia, and exercised associated collapse. Throughout the weekend the JMU students were provided the opportunity to gain knowledge and experience in regard to the planning and practice of providing medical care during a marathon.
