B.A.A. provides educational and accreditation opportunities for vital support staff.
BOSTON— The Boston Athletic Association is leading the way in the marathon world by offering medical volunteers the chance to earn Continuing Education (CE) credits as part of their preparation for the Boston Marathon presented by Bank of America.
Continuing Education credits are compulsory for medical professionals to maintain their license and accreditation. This new program being offered through the B.A.A. will allow many of the 1,800 medical volunteers the opportunity to capitalize on the vital support services they provide on race day.
Medical support staff at the Boston Marathon includes a multi-disciplinary staff of clinicians, including physicians, nurses, podiatrist, emergency medical technicians, nurse practitioners, athletic trainers, and physical therapists.
The program is managed by Gifford Productions in Newton, MA. who shifted from traditional video training to launching a state-of-the-art Learning Management System (LMS.) Their platform offers 24/7 access to tailored training modules, video lessons, and assessments, empowering 1800 volunteers with essential medical and logistical knowledge for the Boston Marathon.
This year the B.A.A. worked with Harvard Medical School Postgraduate Medical Education to offer AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ for physicians and ANCC contact hours for nurses participating in the training modules. This broadens the B.A.A.’s ability to educate medical staff on a wide range of endurance medicine topics.
The B.A.A. is also working with Cogent Steps LLC in Alexandria VA – an approved educational provider for the American Academy of Sports Physical Therapy (AASPT), as well at the National Athletic Training Association.
Cogent Steps owner, Shelly Weinstein said: “Like the B.A.A., we strive to education our medical professionals and volunteers in the best practices of care for our athletes and we are proud of this relationship with the B.A.A.”
In addition to these new educational opportunities, partnerships with the Department of Public Health and their Office of Emergency Management will allow the B.A.A to share this educational opportunity to all supporting EMS agencies, area hospital staff and our public safety partners.
B.A.A. Medical Coordinator, Chris Troyanos said: “We are delighted to be able to launch this CE program to support our wonderful medical volunteers. Some of the best medical practitioners come to work with us at the Boston Marathon year after year and their services are invaluable to us.”
Aside from the medical credit program and distance learning opportunities, the B.A.A. is now in the second year of its medical grant program, which helps promote vital medical research using the Boson Marathon as a living laboratory which study the impacts on the body while running long distances.
To further the B.A.A. educational mission our 9,000 Boston Marathon volunteers and all 30,000 athletes are provided with a lifesaving video on the fundamentals of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). This program is designed to help our athletes in the unlikely event of a cardiac arrest on the course. In addition to the video our volunteers will also be demonstrating CPR at a dedicated booth at the Bank of America Boston Marathon Expo.
ABOUT THE BOSTON ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION (B.A.A.)
Established in 1887, the Boston Athletic Association is a non-profit organization with a mission of promoting a healthy lifestyle through sports, especially running. The B.A.A. manages the Boston Marathon, and supports comprehensive charity, youth, and year-round programming. The 128th Boston Marathon presented by Bank of America is scheduled to take place on Monday, April 15, 2024. The Boston Marathon is part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, along with international marathons in Tokyo, London, Berlin, Chicago, and New York City. For more information on the B.A.A., please visit www.baa.org.
