DePaul's Trainers Undaunted in a Pandemic

CHICAGO – The story of Nicole Schulz epitomizes the fear, apprehension and dread of the unknown that has devastated so many Americans during the worst health crisis in our country's history.

All of the ugly tentacles that ensnared innocent people from coast to coast threatened to tear Schulz's life apart---battling the coronavirus, job uncertainty and a mounting death toll with no end in sight.

Schulz had devoted the last five years of her life to working as an athletic trainer at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Fla. totally immersed in a demanding profession and earning a reputation as the ultimate team player.

All of a sudden last spring, life as she knew it began to capsize. Like so many others worldwide, Schulz was reeling with the feeling of someone standing on the wobbly deck of an ocean liner as the RMS Titanic slowly began taking on water.

This couldn't actually be happening, she may have thought to herself. After all, sports had always been her sturdy, dependable life boat.

Little did she realize she was about to become an unwilling participant in a global tragedy the likes of which even the greatest Greek tragic playwrights Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides could never have penned.

"When all the students had been sent home with no idea of when they would return, my role as an athletic trainer at Eckerd was no longer deemed essential," Schulz said. "Luckily, I was given opportunities to help out in other departments around campus primarily in housing and residence life.

"Despite these efforts, at the beginning of May I was informed I would be furloughed and there was no certainty when I would be back. This hit me hard. I had put five years into this institution and gladly helped out wherever I was needed and still, it was necessary to put me on furlough.

"During furlough, I struggled with all the free time I had—something not at all typical. I began to think about different career options. I always thought working in athletics had a lot of job security because there would always be sports. Then came the pandemic."

Nearly a year later and after a COVID-19 death count of more than 550,000 Americans, Schulz reflects back on the most tumultuous time in her life as she and her teammates in DePaul Sports Medicine are saluted during National Athletic Training Month.

With her career prospects at Eckerd dimming by the day, Schulz made the bold decision to launch a job search in the most unpredictable of times. As fate would have it, she came across a job posting for DePaul.

After serving as the athletic trainer for the Eckerd volleyball, women's basketball and softball teams while also working as the athletic insurance coordinator, Schulz leaped at the opportunity to join a perennial Top 25 NCAA Division I program working side-by-side with a legendary women's basketball coach named Doug Bruno.

"I had never been to Chicago, but my fiancé loved the city and was open to the possibility of moving away from her family to help me pursue my career goals," Schulz said. "After accepting the position, I immediately started packing up and preparing for the trip from St. Petersburg to Chicago.

"The last 12 months have been an absolute roller coaster. One of the most stressful periods was making the decision to job search in the middle of a pandemic, move across the country and start a new position with very little knowledge on how to navigate the pandemic.

"It's hard enough to properly manage new tasks during a global health crisis at an institution you've been at for five years---let alone start at a new one where you also need to learn the day-to-day operations and procedures of that sports medicine department."

The transition was a smooth one thanks to the steadfast, sturdy leadership of Associate Athletics Director Sue Walsh along with Schulz's dedicated, hard-working new teammates Mike Sommer, Cyndi Becker, Eileen Bennett and Danielle McCormick.

"I could not have been met with a better group of people on my first day," Schulz said. "There was definitely a quick learning curve and a lot of unknowns with the pandemic, but the staff we have has definitely been a great help.

"I have been fortunate that only a few members of my family-and-friend circle have been affected by COVID-19 and had minimal symptoms."

*****

Cyndi Becker is grateful that adaptability and mindfulness are core components in her DNA that kept her anchored during the pandemic.

"The last 12 months have been full of changes for me with three different roles since last March," Becker said. "It has been overwhelming, disappointing and validating at various times. I had to step away from DePaul, relocate to Toledo, Ohio, work nights and then jump back into DePaul taking on new responsibilities."

As in any crisis or emergency, moments of extreme duress or life-threatening danger brings out the better angels in all of us. Sometimes it's the adrenaline rush setting off a super-human effort. Other times, it's leading with the heart instead of the head.

"I have learned that my Sports Medicine teammates are always willing to help," Becker said. "In the last eight months, there has been a moment for each of us where overwhelming stress triggered a collective response of 'how can I help you?'

"As someone who felt overwhelmed, that was relieving to hear. On the flip side, there was never a moment the workload decreased for our team, but when it was evident a team member was nearing burnout, I was more than happy to help."

Along with the one-for-all bonding of "Team Sports Med," Becker & Co. drew strength and inspiration from those they served.

"I learned that everyone is processing this year at a different pace and in different ways," Becker said. "I am not just talking about a pandemic. The patience and appreciation vocalized by other staff members and student-athletes has meant so much.

"I don't come to work every day to feel appreciated, but when staff members and student-athletes have acknowledged that our department is slammed and have exercised adaptability and patience with us, the weight I feel all of the sudden becomes a little lighter. I am so grateful for that."

Becker's teammate Mike Sommer described the last 12 months as "deflating," referring to the stressful waiting period between tests followed by the truly unenviable role of being the messenger who delivers bad news to coaches and administrators.

No one in Sports Med had a worse run than Sommer. The men's basketball program that Sommer is assigned to was forced to miss a total of nine games this season because of COVID-19 protocols.

The Blue Demons paused basketball activities three times and watched as COVID-related issues at other schools forced postponements and cancellations of games and pauses in their basketball activities.

"The most stressful part is the waiting period between testing," Sommer said. "The stress then continues when you have to relay results to a coaching staff and administrators, so each time you call them they immediately assume you are delivering bad news.

"The weirdest story was being on the court at St. John's warming up for a game tipping off at noon. Around 11:15 a.m., one of the St. John's administrators came running on the floor yelling at us to get off and head to the locker room. It felt more like an active-shooter situation than a positive Covid case, which then canceled our game."

Sommer paused for a moment to collect his thoughts.

"The biggest challenge for us as athletic trainers---it was almost impossible to do our actual jobs at a high level," he said. "The chaos of scheduling, testing and reporting took up probably 75 percent of our time, leaving us very little time to work with our student-athletes.

"We had to work constantly with evolving protocols within the department. The coronavirus has presented numerous personal challenges as well. We no longer have the option to hang out with friends or visit a family member because we don't want to jeopardize the playing season."

Despite all the stress and long hours, Eileen Bennett has uncovered some positive gems in the last 12 months.

The pandemic has required the first-year athletic trainer to interact with people from all walks of the DePaul spectrum, including those outside of athletics. She has come to appreciate the small, tight-knit family dynamic within the Sullivan Athletic Center, sort of a silver lining amidst the dark pandemic cloud.

"Any time one of our teams has gone on pause, that has been a very stressful time for all of us," Bennett said. "As a medical staff, we know these decisions are in the best interest of everyone's health and safety. But we also see the disappointment our student-athletes face when this happens.

"One thing I have noticed is that these pauses have given our athletes a newfound appreciation for their sports. They've realized again how special it is to be an athlete and compete every day doing something they love."

Doing something Bennett loves could have resulted in dire consequences.

"Early on, I would worry a lot about becoming positive and then exposing all of our student-athletes," Bennett said. "The nature of my job requires a lot of contact. I've had to be extremely mindful inside and outside of work with my personal mitigation strategies."

*****

Resiliency is a wonderful byproduct of the human condition and an attribute that sustained so many these last 12 months.

Restaurants closing down resulted in Schulz and her fiancé becoming more daring and adventuresome in the kitchen, concocting creations that cut way down on carry-out and boosted the bank account.

With Walsh handling the day-to-day management of the Covid crisis, Sommer was called upon to take ownership of numerous administrative responsibilities---and the former college basketball player once again came through in the clutch.

Becker foresees a scenario where a Covid-crazy environment actually benefits athletic trainers nationwide.

"When I think about the pandemic and how it has affected me personally, I feel hopeful that it will have a positive impact on the athletic training profession," Becker said. "Athletic trainers increased efficiency in healthcare.

"We stepped outside our confines for duties that any trained professional (outside of healthcare) could manage, and performed with increased efficiency for the athletics department. A small part of me worries that an organization could see our ability to be resilient and take advantage of that. However, I am hoping it really just brings our profession to light and provides a revealing insight into our scope and value."

Bennett is grateful for the resiliency that carried Sports Med through waves of stress and emotions and brought the six trainers closer than ever. Sommer learned that everyone has more resiliency inside them than they think.

COVID-19 made Schulz realize that despite her abundance of time management skills, she couldn't do it alone.

"Mike Sommer and Cyndi Becker were great with the onboarding and answering the millions of questions we all had," Schulz said. "Sue Walsh has always been supportive and willing to talk through situations with us. Eileen Bennett and Danielle McCormick are also great and always willing to lend a helping hand."

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