North Central College student helps provide health care for 500 dancers

Amanda Szabo, who has been dancing since she was 3, and the UNCSA athletic training staff were responsible for more than 500 students.
Amanda Szabo, who has been dancing since she was 3, and the UNCSA athletic training staff were responsible for more than 500 students. | Contributed photo
North Central College's Amanda Szabo recently joined the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science and participated in an internship at the University of North Carolina School of Arts (UNCSA) this summer.

“Through my experiences, I have realized that dancers are a very underserved population when it comes to health care and, specifically, athletic training services,” Szabo, a senior athletic psychology double major, said. “This internship gives me the opportunity to educate dancers on injury prevention and rehabilitate them back from injury.”

Szabo, who has been dancing since she was 3, and the UNCSA athletic training staff were responsible for more than 500 students in intensives, including dance, film, drama, stage combat and music.

“Growing up as a dancer, I wish I had access to athletic training services to help me realize the importance of caring for my body and injury recovery so I could have a longer dance career,” Szabo said. “My hopes are that performers will share what they have learned regarding injury care and prevention with other fellow performing artists to continue a long and healthy career.”