Part I
The piece of technology that I would like to implement into my athletic training room is a modality called the Dynatron Solaris Plus. Specifically I would like the model of the 708 Plus that contains 3 channels, combo, electrical stimulation, light, and ultrasound.
Needs of Target Population/Community
The needs of the target population consist of the treatment options available through this specific modality. This modality will allow for electrical stimulation in combination with ultrasound and will have an additional option for heat or cold through the ultrasound head. The head can also be used in congruence with massage while the treatment is being administered, which I believe will step up the treatment to a higher and more capable level. There is a need for one machine that will house the treatment options that we currently have in addition to the treatments available with the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus. This would allow for treatment in a more organized manner and will allow us to treat injuries with a higher level of care.
Identify A Problem And Its Causes
Currently the modality machines that we have are older and although they still get the job done, newer and more updated machines can provide care at a much higher level. In the investment of this machine we can administer our current modality practices as well as the new treatments offered with the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus. In purchasing this single machine it will save us from greater costs later when needing to replace the individual electrical stimulation and ultrasound machines. The Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus will help each of our athletes that may need a treatment in the future and, with the type of treatment it will provide, will decrease the time that an athlete is out of play due to an injury.
Organizational Description
This technology will benefit the student-athletes at Cherry Creek High School, which is home to just over 2,100 student-athletes.
Define the Solution
I want a modality in our athletic training room similar to the one that our team doctors use in effort to best align treatment practices. I feel as though implementing this technology would have a positive effect on the treatment of our student-athletes and will provide me, as the athletic trainer, the best possible tool to help in the student-athletes’ healing process.
Goals
If the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus is implemented into my athletic training room I hope that I can use it in the way it is designed to be used and assist all student-athletes that would benefit from this treatment in effort to return them to normal function and to play as soon as possible. I think that modalities can be an excellent resource in any rehabilitation or treatment protocol and I hope that this would be no exception and would be a great addition to the tools that I already have at my disposal.
Budget
Based upon my research, the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus costs approximately $4,000. I plan to use any leftover resources from my yearly budget after my supply order has been placed and to discuss the remainder with our team doctor’s office, Steadman Hawkins. I anticipate needing help with $3,000 for the machine and am confident that our team physicians will pay the remainder to get such an excellent modality into our athletic training room for treatments on our student-athletes.
Evaluation
I anticipate that I will be able to talk with the student-athletes that have the various treatments and keep open communication with them on what they are experiencing. I also will be able to compare the timelines and outcomes to previous situations that I have seen and draw comparisons on the results of different injuries and the healing timelines that I have and will observe. I would also be able to review prior records to identify return to play timing based on respective injuries, and make comparisons to return to play timing subsequent to implementing the new technology. This will serve to analyze hard data in effort to evaluate the benefits of the new technology.
Objectives
The objective of implementing this new technology is to provide the best care possible in supplementing the various treatment options available with the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus. In addition to this objective, we believe this new technology to improve return to play timing, healing effectiveness, and potentially limit or mitigate season or career ending injuries.
Plan
I plan to implement this technology as often as it is needed. After injury evaluations are performed and a treatment protocol is prescribed, it may or may not include some treatment from the use of this modality. It is hard to give a definite answer to how often it will be used when injuries are never predictable and the routine that takes place in my athletic training room on a daily basis differs greatly.
Activities and Timeline
The first step in the direction of implementing this technology is finalizing my budget and seeing how much I can put toward the machine and getting the go-ahead from my athletic director to approach our team physicians. Once this has been done I will have a meeting with our team doctors and get their feedback on implementing the modality and ask them if they would be willing to pay the remainder of the cost. Based on previous discussions on the subject matter, I am fairly certain that this will not be an issue and that Steadman Hawkins will be happy to support our program in this manner.
Outcomes
Ideally this proposal will result in the implementation of the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus and treatments with this machine can occur in our athletic training room as soon as possible. We will see increased benefits in the healing and treatment of injuries with the assistance of this machine and will have an added valuable tool for all possible treatment protocols in the future.
Impact
As mentioned before, we care for approximately 2,100 student-athletes. Although we do not see each and every single student-athlete and not every student-athlete will experience an injury and/or come to us for treatment purposes, this technology has the potential to help those that we do provide care for. Generally speaking, we see a rough average of 50 student-athletes per day. Of these, we use electrical modalities to treat an approximate average of three student-athletes per day. Given these estimates and the roughly 216 days of possible treatment, the new equipment would see about 648 treatments per year. Assuming that the treatments utilizing the new technology would provide added benefit compared to the old technology, the amount of treatments per year suggest that the impact would be quite substantial. The extent of help that this technology will provide is hard to quantify, but could range from quicker return to play timing to saving a student-athlete’s season or athletic career.
Part II
The implementation team includes the three on staff athletic trainers as well as the athletic training students that do clinical rotations with us from Metropolitan State University of Denver.
Manual
Indications: The athletic training staff will go over the user manual carefully to learn and better understand what the indications would be for the various treatments and the new treatments that this technology encompasses. In doing this, we can all gain a better understanding of when to apply which treatment to which injury and can learn the indications for the treatments available with the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus that we have not been previously familiar with. In combination with reviewing the user manual, the athletic training staff will also interface and communicate frequently with the team physicians not only to discuss the use of the technology and equipment, but also to confer about any indications of treatment and evaluation of benefits.
Contraindications: As with any modality the contraindications should be discussed with the student-athlete prior to beginning the treatment and the specific contraindications for the specific treatment desired should be carefully discussed. Once contraindications have been ruled out and noted for future care, the athletic trainer may proceed with treatment.
Treatment Options: The four main areas of treatment include electrical stimulation, ultrasound, light therapy, and combination therapy. The athletic trainer will administer the appropriate treatment or combination of treatments based on the injury with the knowledge they possess on the use and benefits of modalities. Once our site has received the piece of technology, we will read through the manual to understand how the various treatments work with the specific machine and how to best administer such treatments. This should be relatively simple to pick up on as most of the information is basic knowledge and it will only take a matter of familiarizing ourselves with the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus. Also our team physicians who are already familiar with the equipment will be available to provide any pointers regarding use and benefits to the modalities and functions of the technology.
Materials Needed: In addition to the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus itself, we will need to be sure to have all the attachments including the power cord, the probe, the ultrasound head, and the lead wires for all channels, the electrodes, and a conducting substance such as ultrasound gel.
The piece of technology that I would like to implement into my athletic training room is a modality called the Dynatron Solaris Plus. Specifically I would like the model of the 708 Plus that contains 3 channels, combo, electrical stimulation, light, and ultrasound.
Needs of Target Population/Community
The needs of the target population consist of the treatment options available through this specific modality. This modality will allow for electrical stimulation in combination with ultrasound and will have an additional option for heat or cold through the ultrasound head. The head can also be used in congruence with massage while the treatment is being administered, which I believe will step up the treatment to a higher and more capable level. There is a need for one machine that will house the treatment options that we currently have in addition to the treatments available with the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus. This would allow for treatment in a more organized manner and will allow us to treat injuries with a higher level of care.
Identify A Problem And Its Causes
Currently the modality machines that we have are older and although they still get the job done, newer and more updated machines can provide care at a much higher level. In the investment of this machine we can administer our current modality practices as well as the new treatments offered with the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus. In purchasing this single machine it will save us from greater costs later when needing to replace the individual electrical stimulation and ultrasound machines. The Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus will help each of our athletes that may need a treatment in the future and, with the type of treatment it will provide, will decrease the time that an athlete is out of play due to an injury.
Organizational Description
This technology will benefit the student-athletes at Cherry Creek High School, which is home to just over 2,100 student-athletes.
Define the Solution
I want a modality in our athletic training room similar to the one that our team doctors use in effort to best align treatment practices. I feel as though implementing this technology would have a positive effect on the treatment of our student-athletes and will provide me, as the athletic trainer, the best possible tool to help in the student-athletes’ healing process.
Goals
If the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus is implemented into my athletic training room I hope that I can use it in the way it is designed to be used and assist all student-athletes that would benefit from this treatment in effort to return them to normal function and to play as soon as possible. I think that modalities can be an excellent resource in any rehabilitation or treatment protocol and I hope that this would be no exception and would be a great addition to the tools that I already have at my disposal.
Budget
Based upon my research, the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus costs approximately $4,000. I plan to use any leftover resources from my yearly budget after my supply order has been placed and to discuss the remainder with our team doctor’s office, Steadman Hawkins. I anticipate needing help with $3,000 for the machine and am confident that our team physicians will pay the remainder to get such an excellent modality into our athletic training room for treatments on our student-athletes.
Evaluation
I anticipate that I will be able to talk with the student-athletes that have the various treatments and keep open communication with them on what they are experiencing. I also will be able to compare the timelines and outcomes to previous situations that I have seen and draw comparisons on the results of different injuries and the healing timelines that I have and will observe. I would also be able to review prior records to identify return to play timing based on respective injuries, and make comparisons to return to play timing subsequent to implementing the new technology. This will serve to analyze hard data in effort to evaluate the benefits of the new technology.
Objectives
The objective of implementing this new technology is to provide the best care possible in supplementing the various treatment options available with the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus. In addition to this objective, we believe this new technology to improve return to play timing, healing effectiveness, and potentially limit or mitigate season or career ending injuries.
Plan
I plan to implement this technology as often as it is needed. After injury evaluations are performed and a treatment protocol is prescribed, it may or may not include some treatment from the use of this modality. It is hard to give a definite answer to how often it will be used when injuries are never predictable and the routine that takes place in my athletic training room on a daily basis differs greatly.
Activities and Timeline
The first step in the direction of implementing this technology is finalizing my budget and seeing how much I can put toward the machine and getting the go-ahead from my athletic director to approach our team physicians. Once this has been done I will have a meeting with our team doctors and get their feedback on implementing the modality and ask them if they would be willing to pay the remainder of the cost. Based on previous discussions on the subject matter, I am fairly certain that this will not be an issue and that Steadman Hawkins will be happy to support our program in this manner.
Outcomes
Ideally this proposal will result in the implementation of the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus and treatments with this machine can occur in our athletic training room as soon as possible. We will see increased benefits in the healing and treatment of injuries with the assistance of this machine and will have an added valuable tool for all possible treatment protocols in the future.
Impact
As mentioned before, we care for approximately 2,100 student-athletes. Although we do not see each and every single student-athlete and not every student-athlete will experience an injury and/or come to us for treatment purposes, this technology has the potential to help those that we do provide care for. Generally speaking, we see a rough average of 50 student-athletes per day. Of these, we use electrical modalities to treat an approximate average of three student-athletes per day. Given these estimates and the roughly 216 days of possible treatment, the new equipment would see about 648 treatments per year. Assuming that the treatments utilizing the new technology would provide added benefit compared to the old technology, the amount of treatments per year suggest that the impact would be quite substantial. The extent of help that this technology will provide is hard to quantify, but could range from quicker return to play timing to saving a student-athlete’s season or athletic career.
Part II
The implementation team includes the three on staff athletic trainers as well as the athletic training students that do clinical rotations with us from Metropolitan State University of Denver.
Manual
Indications: The athletic training staff will go over the user manual carefully to learn and better understand what the indications would be for the various treatments and the new treatments that this technology encompasses. In doing this, we can all gain a better understanding of when to apply which treatment to which injury and can learn the indications for the treatments available with the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus that we have not been previously familiar with. In combination with reviewing the user manual, the athletic training staff will also interface and communicate frequently with the team physicians not only to discuss the use of the technology and equipment, but also to confer about any indications of treatment and evaluation of benefits.
Contraindications: As with any modality the contraindications should be discussed with the student-athlete prior to beginning the treatment and the specific contraindications for the specific treatment desired should be carefully discussed. Once contraindications have been ruled out and noted for future care, the athletic trainer may proceed with treatment.
Treatment Options: The four main areas of treatment include electrical stimulation, ultrasound, light therapy, and combination therapy. The athletic trainer will administer the appropriate treatment or combination of treatments based on the injury with the knowledge they possess on the use and benefits of modalities. Once our site has received the piece of technology, we will read through the manual to understand how the various treatments work with the specific machine and how to best administer such treatments. This should be relatively simple to pick up on as most of the information is basic knowledge and it will only take a matter of familiarizing ourselves with the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus. Also our team physicians who are already familiar with the equipment will be available to provide any pointers regarding use and benefits to the modalities and functions of the technology.
Materials Needed: In addition to the Dynatron Solaris 708 Plus itself, we will need to be sure to have all the attachments including the power cord, the probe, the ultrasound head, and the lead wires for all channels, the electrodes, and a conducting substance such as ultrasound gel.