Industrial Athletic Trainers: Role, Limitations & Alternatives

Industrial athletic trainers (IATs) are often considered valuable assets when it comes to employee health management and injury prevention. They are most often seen in high-risk industries like manufacturing, construction, and logistics. But how do they work?

In such industries, workers are prone to musculoskeletal injuries, which is one of the main focuses of industrial athletic trainers. Since these sorts of injuries bring about high costs for companies, employers are always looking for ways to prevent them.

Lately, companies have turned to outsourcing industrial athletic trainers to do injury prevention and bring more workplace safety efforts to their sites.

While IATs have many benefits, they also come with their limitations. They are usually confined to physical health and may overlook more complex health issues like chronic illness management or injury case coordination.  

So, who are industrial athletes and why are athletic trainers increasingly used for treating them? If you’re new to the world of industrial athletic trainers, you’ve come to the right place.

In this guide, we will tell you all you need to know about the role and limitations of industrial athletic trainers in different high-risk sectors. We will also show you the best alternatives for businesses that require a more robust occupational health solution like onsite medics and telemedicine in the workplace.

What is the Role of Industrial Athletic Trainers?

Industrial athletic trainers are specialists in preventing and managing workplace injuries. While they used to only assist athletes with their injuries, they have now evolved to help workers address ergonomic issues, teach them how to move better and support them through their recovery processes in industries like construction.

In 2022, the cost of workplace injuries had reached $167 billion. How can IATs help employers battle these costs?

Usually, industrial athletic trainers will be responsible for 2 main areas:

Injury prevention and body mechanics

IATs focus on reducing strain because of injuries through body mechanics education and ergonomic interventions. This is one of the most common tasks you’ll see with athletic trainers in industrial settings.

Working with an experienced industrial trainer and having them onsite may help you reduce your OSHA recordables by around 50%. As you can tell, the solution is not without its benefits. Yet, there are limitations to this solution.

Wellness initiatives

Next, industrial athletic trainers are usually responsible for leading wellness programs, focusing on long-term health improvements through physical activity and injury prevention strategies. 

If done effectively, these programs can promote the overall well-being of your workers and even reduce the incidence of both work-related and non-work-related injuries. 

Impact of Industrial Athletic Trainers in High-Injury Sectors

Which sectors benefit the most from industrial athlete solutions? 

Overall, workers who face a higher rate of injuries such as musculoskeletal traumas, slips, trips, falls, and other physical hazards, are those in construction, manufacturing, as well as warehousing and logistics.

While IATs may not be able to provide comprehensive health solutions to prevent injuries and manage recoveries at a higher level, they can still have some impact on these sectors.

Construction Industry

A common way to see athletic trainers in the industrial setting is on-site in construction areas. Let’s understand the risk profile and the role of IATs in this industry as a whole.

Risks: In this industry, the most common injury reports are due to fatal and non-fatal musculoskeletal injuries, equipment-related accidents, and falls. In fact, according to OSHA, the leading cause of death in construction is falling from heights. 

The role of IATs: Aside from treating injuries after they’ve occurred, IATs mostly help in ergonomic assessments, teaching proper lifting techniques, and developing injury prevention protocols that enhance overall construction site safety.

Manufacturing Industry

Can industry and athletics injuries overlap? Since the physical injury types from both sectors are similar to each other, IATs are able to repurpose their knowledge. Let’s discuss how they can help in the manufacturing safety field.

Risks: Usually, manufacturing workers get repetitive strain injuries, machine-related injuries, and slips or trips caused by hazardous materials on the floor. When workers in this industry develop musculoskeletal disorders, it is usually due to repetitive tasks involving heavy machinery and long hours standing or performing the same motion.  Ensuring manufacturing safety requires addressing these risks proactively.

The role of IATs: As with the construction industry, IATs can develop ergonomic interventions for the manufacturing industry as well. They have the skills to create proper posture training programs and help employees who are in recovery.

Warehousing and Logistics

One of the main goals of IATs is to ensure on-site employee health. This is tough when the workers always face risks due to the nature of their jobs. In warehousing and logistics, the risks are high, but IATs play their role in reducing them.

Risks: With an industry like this, lifting-related injuries, slips, and accidents involving forklifts or other heavy equipment are the most common. It is work that requires workers to be fast-paced, and physically active, to say the least, thereby increasing the risk of injury.

The role of IATs: The best way industrial athletic trainers can help in this industry is by training employees in body mechanics to help them reduce the likelihood of getting strains and sprains. Additionally, they can help design workspaces to minimize injury risks related to slips and falls.

Limitations of Industrial Athletic Trainers

While having an onsite industrial athletic trainer can help in smaller sized businesses, injury prevention and management require a more holistic approach.  The main downfalls of IATs involve a smaller range of expertise. 

Ultimately, they may not be able to deliver broader occupational health services, which could help prevent more injuries than an industrial athlete program could. Let’s talk a bit more about the limitations of IATs.

Scope of expertise

While industrial athletic training is great for physical health and injury management, it still lacks the expertise in more comprehensive health solutions. These can range from chemical exposure monitoring and chronic illness management to even mental health. 

In many industries like oil and gas, chemical manufacturing, large-scale construction, and mining, workers face unique health risks that go beyond the capabilities of an IAT. Their limitation in expertise can become a deal-breaker here.

Cost considerations

Another issue that IATs bring about, this time for smaller businesses, is the costs associated with them. While hiring an onsite industrial athletic trainer can be valuable, the cost will often not justify itself. 

Additionally, IATs don’t usually have fundamental expertise in workers’ compensation intricacies. 

Ongoing costs will be high, especially if you need coverage for multiple sites. For situations where IATs don’t meet your budget and expertise requirements, there are great alternatives you can consider. 

Alternatives to Industrial Athletic Trainers

For many different types of businesses, the role of an IAT may not meet their occupational health needs. In such cases, you can investigate injury management alternatives that can give you broader care and help you save costs in the meantime.

Some of the best solutions that are recently gaining traction are the all-in-one integrated industrial medical services like the one we provide here at JobSiteCare. 

We’ve also identified the 3 main alternatives for industrial athletic trainers, so let’s talk about them now.

Comprehensive onsite health and injury management solutions

If you care highly about preventing and managing injuries your workers might get on your construction site, you should consider an onsite health program (or clinic). They have a holistic approach to the health and wellbeing of your workers that includes:

• Physical therapy
• Mental health support
• Ongoing checkups
• Regular health screenings

With these programs, you don’t just keep your employees safe and healthy, you also mitigate your risk of getting workers’ compensation claims. 

Investing in a solution like this becomes a no-brainer when you find out about the $1.47 ROI of employee health programs for every dollar spent.

Another thing you should know is that these occupational health clinics usually have many different types of professionals. From paramedics to occupational health nurses, they can address all your employees’ possible health issues.

Finally, you also get a partner who works with you to boost your bottom line while keeping your employees’ injury-free. The benefits include, but are not limited to:

• End-to-end injury case management  
• Workers’ compensation cost control  
• 24/7 availability, even at remote locations

Whether you’re looking to implement a health program or bring in onsite medics to your construction area, this solution will cover all your worries.

Onsite medics

The second alternative to industrial athletic trainers we like is construction site medical services. If you work with a partner who knows what they’re doing, you can meet all OSHA standards, prevent injuries, and give immediate medical response to your workers.

You can install a medical trailer on-site or hire OSHA-certified medical professionals to intervene in injuries before they become more serious. This can go way beyond the scope of an IAT.

On-site medics are always trained to handle a wide range of emergency situations. They can offer:

• First aid
• Trauma care
• Injury stabilization
• And more

In high-risk industries, having such medical care available on-site can make a huge difference.

If your job site is in a remote location, having on-site medics can be a great solution. Their quick responses to emergency situations will reduce the time to treatment and eventually improve health outcomes for your injured workers.

Virtual health solutions

Last but not least, let’s talk about one of the best recent medical advancements – occupational telemedicine. 

With this solution, in most cases, you don’t need to take the injury case off the worksite. Instead, you’ll have healthcare available at your fingertips on your phone. 

This is a great alternative for companies that cannot afford full-time on-site industrial athletic trainers. With telemedicine solutions, your workers can reach a medical professional through phone, text, or video calls almost at any time.

Additionally, these virtual services also offer triage and wellness coaching. 

If you’re looking for a flexible and scalable healthcare service that goes beyond just treating physical injuries, this might be your perfect option.

For emergency situations, you can also investigate Telemedicine Urgent Care. It instantly connects you with board-certified doctors through a HIPAA-compliant and secure occupational telemedicine platform. As a result, you can get an immediate accurate diagnosis, and a specialized treatment plan developed just for you and your injury.

Conclusion

Industrial athletic trainers have an important role to play in reducing workplace injuries, especially in high-risk industries. However, they have significant cost considerations for small businesses and a limited scope of expertise that may not be wide enough for some companies striving for more comprehensive industrial medical services.

For organizations looking for a more comprehensive health solution to manage a huge range of risks your employees face, there are amazing alternatives to industrial athletic trainers like onsite healthcare, telehealth services, and more. 

These are the main ways you can care for your employees while also keeping your bottom line safe. The right solution for your business is going to depend on the unique needs of your company.

Here at JobSiteCare, we have long-running expertise in telemedicine, onsite medical solutions, and much more. If you want to do what is best for your workers and business, we recommend you take our risk assessment quiz and get in touch with us to get a tailored plan.

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