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Moanalua trainer Reed Takano tends to a player at a softball against Kaiser. Greg Yamamoto | SL

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March is National Athletic Training Month and while there's just a few days left before April, the work never ends for the members of the Hawaii Athletic Trainers' Association. 

HATA, which was founded in 1985 and has since grown to more than 200 members statewide, celebrated National Athletic Training Month with a Zumba Day on March 16 at McKinley High School in an effort to raise awareness of what the job entails.

"The main purpose for National Athletic Training Month is just to get more public recognition about our profession and letting the public know who we are and what it is that we do," HATA president Louise Inafuku said.

Inafuku, an athletic trainer at Iolani School and a registered dietitian, said nearly 100 people participated in Zumba Day.

"The Moanalua (boys) volleyball team came as part of their team bonding and they were great. They did all the moves and they were very enthusiastic about it," Inafuku said. "In the past, we've done beach clean-ups — we tried to do a community event — but last year we had to reschedule twice because of the rain, so that's why this year we went with something that was a little more weather-resistant."

In addition to the free Zumba classes, there were booths by both HATA and the Hawaii Concussion Awareness Management Program and rehab Olympics. 

"It was open to our HATA members, high school students and their families and we also got some help from some (University of Hawaii) students," HATA public relations representative Lindsay Schmidt said.

Schmidt, an athletic trainer at Mid-Pacific Institute, said members of her profession are often confused with personal trainers, like those at the gym.

"Part of this is to spread awareness about all that athletic trainers do and to educate the public and make ourselves known to them," Schmidt said.

The slogan for this year's National Athletic Training Month is "We've got your back," which is certainly fitting to the job itself.

"I hate to say that it's like being a jack of all trades, but really it sums it all up," Inafuku said. "We are often the first responder to injuries at athletic events, assessing acute injuries, rehab, administrative work — you really end up doing a little bit of everything," Inafuku said. "It's definitely not a nine-to-five job — it's very unconventional as far as scheduling goes — but if you love sports, you basically get to be around the athletes and for me personally, a big reward in the profession is to see them from start to finish; you're the first to respond when they're injured and you helped them along the way to return."

Schmidt echoed her sentiment.

"We deal with anything from injury to illness prevention, first aid, emergency care, assessment of injuries — we're always there," Schmidt said. "We're always there for the kids, there for their safety and there to help them."

Inafuku said that although a bachelors' degree is the minimum requirement to take the licensing exam, 70 percent of HATA members have a masters' degree of higher.

As a state, Hawaii is well ahead of the curve nationwide with at least one athletic trainer in every public school.

"I think mainly because of the fact that we're in one school district for the entire state, that allows us to have two athletic trainers at most (Department of Education) schools," Inafuku said. "That's basically unheard of on the national level. We're the only state that has this implemented, so it's been a huge success on our part."

Inafuku helped bring more awareness of athletic trainers to the forefront when she saved the life of an Iolani baseball coach who went into cardiac arrest last month. Inafuku used an automated external defibrillator (AED) to revive him.

"I think the important thing to take from that story is basically to don't be afraid to use an AED if it's there," Inafuku said. "You can never harm someone with it — it will only shock if its needed. Most people are hesitant because they don't want to do any harm and they want to refer to a medical professional, but it will walk you through everything, even how to do the chest compressions and the CPR. I would rather people just don't hesitate. It could be the difference between sending a condolence card and a get-well card."