AT Alumna Talks to WKYT About use of AEDs Heading into Football Season

Outreach Athletic Trainer (and CHS alumna) Allie Schanck knows the importance of AEDs, also known as automated external defibrillators. She carries one with her at every game and every practice.

When it comes to a medical emergency, especially any cardiac-related incident, it’s seconds that matter. Not minutes, she told WKYT.

Last week, 18-year-old Bronny James went into cardiac arrest during a basketball practice, and earlier this year, Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field during a Bills game. It was the athletic trainers who got to these players first.

“When there’s a delay or not an athletic trainer there, that’s when we see these more tragic outcomes,” Schanck said. “So parents — ask if your school has an athletic trainer, see if they have emergency action plans that are specific for each venue.”

Schanck, who graduated from UK in 2021, is an Outreach Athletic Trainer working in Garrard County Schools. Schanck has a portable AED with her at every game and every practice. They’ve ensured an AED is always within a minute’s distance at the most.

We actually talked to Schanck back in 2022. As we push for applications for our AT program, let's revisit that conversation, where we asked about her life and her career: