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Rebecca Lopez, PhD, LAT, ATC

Rebecca Lopez, PhD, LAT, ATC

Dr. Rebecca M. Lopez is a Professor in the Athletic Training Program at the University of South Florida’s Morsani College of Medicine and a Fellow of NATA. Dr. Lopez is currently serving as an Assistant School Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the School of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Sciences at USF. She also serves as Co-Chair of NATA’s DEIA Task Force. Through her leadership as a Co-Chair of this task force, she has been working to ensure the profession of athletic training continues to grow as health care providers by embracing diversity, cultivating an inclusive and welcoming environment, and reducing the health and health care disparities of underrepresented groups. 

Research interests include exertional heat stroke and other exertional heat illnesses, cooling methods for hyperthermic athletes, ergogenic aids and thermoregulation, hydration and exercise performance, exercise heat tolerance issues with American football uniforms, sickle cell trait & the athlete, preventing sudden death in sport, return to activity following heat stroke, youth sports injury, and diversity, equity & inclusion in athletic training.

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  • Gender Equity - Strategies & Tools to Level the Playing Field
    Contains 6 Component(s), Includes Credits

    Female ATs are represented in all practice settings and throughout healthcare, but glaring equity gaps exist in the workplace. Inequities in salary, leadership positions and promotion for women ATs are well documented. As an example, the salary gap between men and women ATs INCREASED from 2018 to 2021 (NATA 2021 Salary Survey). This session will address recognition of the problem, analysis of underlying mechanisms and proactive measures to overcome them. It will bring awareness to the issues surrounding inequity in the workplace and will provide strategies for all ATs to work together to address them. Resources will be presented…

  • DEIA: A Roadmap for Athletic Trainers
    Contains 5 Component(s), Includes Credits

    With the NATA's recent commitment to DEIA, it is imperative for athletic trainers to be knowledgeable about ways to directly engage their current practice in an equitable way. The purpose of this presentation is to provide athletic trainers with background, knowledge, and action steps regarding ways to implement DEIA initiatives in their professional, social, and personal lives. This presentation will include historical perspectives regarding DEIA in the athletic training profession, current national initiatives and future action steps to challenge athletic trainers to take the next steps.