Equipment for Athletic Training Rooms

An athletic trainer's job is to treat and prevent injuries. Because they often work closely with sports teams and players, trainers should be equipped to treat all the minor injuries that commonly occur during sporting events, and they also must be able to make early diagnoses and treatments of more serious ones.

  1. First Aid

    • An athletic training room should be equipped to deal with minor injuries and illnesses that commonly occur during sports. Materials such as tape and wraps, gauze, bandages, braces, crutches, splints, slings and wheelchairs should be stocked because wounds such as cuts and sprains occur frequently in many sports. Because illness can also occur, basic medicines such as pain relievers, antacids, cold and flu relief and sore throat relief would be useful. Topical treatments such as eye washes, skin and antibiotic ointments, foot sprays, sun block and disinfectants are also useful. Fans and misters should also be available for heat-related stress.

    Basic Response and Treatment

    • Because the athletic trainer will often be the first person to respond to injured athletes, she should have both the equipment to, if necessary, transport a wounded athlete and provide a location for recovery and analysis. The training room should contain treatment and examination tables, carts, exam lights, pillows and blankets, mats, screens for privacy, latex gloves and disposable masks. Diagnostic tools such as blood pressure monitors, thermometers, stethoscopes and otoscopes are useful, too.

    Advanced Equipment

    • Because any number of injuries can occur during sports, a trainer can never be too prepared. Whirlpool tanks are common in the training rooms of professional sports teams to allow their players to relax their muscles after games and as part of injury treatment. Scales, IV poles, ice makers, stretchers and neck braces are useful, as is X-ray equipment.