PBATS (Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society) members recently visited National Athletic Trainers’ Assocation (NATA) headquarters in Dallas, Texas to meet on potential opportunities for collaboration. The visit provided the National Athletic Trainers’ Association and PBATS the opportunity to discuss potential collaboration on topics including internship programs, a growing international presence as well as overseas baseball camps and existing PBATS programs.
PBATS was represented at NATA headquarters by Mark Letendre, director of medical services for Major League Baseball Umpires, Jamie Reed, senior director of medical operations for the Texas Rangers, Rick Griffin, head athletic trainer for the Seattle Mariners and Rob Nodine, assistant athletic trainer for the Seattle Mariners.
The PBATS members received a tour of NATA’s new headquarters and were able to meet with various NATA departments to discuss opportunities for future collaboration between both of the organizations. Both PBATS and NATA plan to work together in order to promote public awareness of PBATS programs and the athletic training profession as a whole.
About the visit, Letendre said, “It was an honor to represent the PBATS Alumni group, PBATS actives and be joined by some of my colleagues who I hold in high esteem. Advancing the professional profile of the professional baseball athletic trainer is a responsibility of all PBATS members. And having Jamie, Rick and Rob share all that is going on within our group was gratifying. It made me very proud listening and learning as a charter member of the group.”
The partnership between these two groups of determined athletic training professionals will undoubtedly lead to growth and increased advocacy of programs and initiatives nationwide.
PBATS’ Promoting a Lifetime of Activity for Youth (PLAY) Campaign and Ability Transcends Challenges (ATC) programs are just a few of the initiatives that NATA and PBATS are seeking to build awareness for.
The PLAY Campaign, a program designed to educate America’s youth about the importance of living healthy and active lifestyles, and the ATC program, created to promote the abilities of people with disabilities while providing them with an opportunity to work, are major focal points for PBATS. With the help of NATA, the groups believe that these programs will continue to flourish.
Overall, after a successful visit, PBATS and NATA are committed to working together to build awareness about their initiatives and programs. Both groups hope to foster growth, and generate more awareness, for the role of all athletic trainers in professional baseball.