Photo by Randy Walker
After 23 years of working with student-athletes in Northwest Indiana, Methodist Hospitals Sports Medicine Program Coordinator Patrick Ohaver’s efforts have been recognized by the Secondary School Committee of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA). Ohaver was recently named Athletic Trainer of the Year for NATA District 4, which covers several states in the Great Lakes region.
The Highland High School athletic director, Ryan Harrington, nominated Ohaver for the award and encouraged him to accept the nomination and assemble all the materials needed to put together a nomination packet.
“I received some great letters of support from many community members, colleagues, and my former supervisor. It was great to see all the kind words that everybody said and the support documents for that,” Ohaver said. “It was good to be honored among the people who provide student-athlete care.”
Ohaver was familiar with the Athletic Trainer of the Year award as he is active in the Great Lakes Athletic Trainers Association and previously nominated someone else for the award. In 2018, he nominated former colleague Mary Spina from Munster who ended up winning the award.
“It was good to be counted in with a former past winner,” he said. “I will get the award in June at our national convention and will then be in the running for the National Athletic Trainer of the Year, which is the next level. We'll see what happens.”
Methodist Hospitals Sports Medicine Program employs 9 full time and 4 part time Athletic Trainers who provide athletic training services to 7 local high schools including Bishop Noll, Griffith, Highland, Lake Station Edison, Merrillville, Wheeler, and Whiting as well as for the Gary Railcats organization. The program provides athletic trainers to the schools so that daily injury management, rehab, and prevention can be implemented at the school. The nine athletic trainers also offer the student athletes access to Methodist Immediate Cares, EDs, and excellent orthopedic surgeons who can diagnose and manage injuries and work with the athletic trainers to get those athletes back to play as safely and quickly as possible.
Whether tackling annual physicals, injury prevention education, physical therapy, or other sports-related care, Ohaver and his colleagues are quick to offer support to both student-athletes and each other.
“There was a recent Highland track invite that had a number of schools attending, so there was a vast number of student-athletes. If one of us needs an extra hand with something like that, we’ll look at the schedules and say, ‘Could you help Patrick out at the Highland invite?’”
Ohaver possesses an intrinsic desire to help others. While he primarily uses that motivation to serve student-athletes, he is also eager to offer support to his colleagues in times of need.
“I’ve been able to assist when colleagues have had life events like weddings and family births,” he said. “I believe if you put good out in the world, the good will come back.”
For more information about the Sports Medicine Program and all of Methodist Hospitals’ wide array of services, visit methodisthospitals.org.
