3/23/2026
March is National Athletic Training Month, a time to recognize the professionals who help athletes stay healthy and perform at their best. In Longview, one CHRISTUS Health athletic trainer works with a different kind of team: firefighters.
Through a partnership between CHRISTUS Health and the City of Longview, Mandy Bibb provides injury prevention and treatment services to more than 175 firefighters stationed across seven locations throughout Longview.
The service comes at no cost to the city, and its impact is felt daily across the department.
“Her expertise and passion for making people healthy and resilient, coupled with her personal investment in increasing performance, is a combination I've not seen in previous experiences,” said Fire Chief Greg Grimes. “This program has had a significant positive impact on numerous personnel and their ability to return to full duty in an expedited manner.”
The program is also a rare one. Fewer than five fire departments in Texas currently have a dedicated athletic trainer assigned specifically to their crews, and CHRISTUS Health operates two of those programs.
This year marks the first year of the partnership between CHRISTUS Health and the Longview Fire Department.
“The feedback has been very positive, and it has been a real joy for me to work with the crews,” Bibb said. “The fire department has been very receptive to my role here and works with me not only on reactive care but also taking steps toward preventative care.”
Calling them “tactical athletes,’ Bibb said firefighter bodies go through many of the same stresses that a traditional athlete experiences, including back, shoulder and other orthopedic injuries that occur from constant carrying of heavy equipment, scaling stairs and ladders and even moving victims from dangerous locations.
In Longview, the fire department also serves as the primary EMS response unit. In December 2025, they responded to more than 1,800 calls for service, emphasizing the need for constant physical readiness.
“Mandy has demonstrated exceptional commitment to engaging personnel and establishing effective strategies, not only for injury rehabilitation but also for overall fitness,” said EMS Division Chief James Lawrence. “In the past, we had to worry about what we did with an injury. Now we can just call her. She is available all the time, and it has been amazing.
Bibb, a White Oak native, has a central office location at the Longview Fire Training Center, where she can work with firefighters on treatment and rehab. She also travels between the seven current fire stations to administer care.
“If someone comes to me early when something starts bothering them, we can usually address it right away and keep it from becoming a bigger problem,” she said.
For firefighters, having direct access to a trained sports medicine professional makes a noticeable difference.
“I can only speak for myself personally in feeling more prepared physically for the job,” said Captain Ryan Nicholson. “As I’ve gotten older, I can feel my body wearing down and seeing Mandy on a regular basis has helped me stay ready and prepared for the job at hand.”
Nicholson said Bibb has quickly become part of the team, and their trust in her has changed the way many firefighters think about injury prevention.
“Knowing she is there to keep us on the job, not pull us off of it, has helped keep any potential skepticism at bay,” he said. “Mandy’s door is always open, and she is dedicated to improving not just an individual’s health but the overall culture of the department.”
Bibb says building those relationships has been one of the most rewarding parts of her job.
“They take care of our community every single day,” she said. “Being able to support them and help keep them healthy enough to keep doing that work means a lot to me.”
Through the partnership with CHRISTUS Health, firefighters have quick access to specialized care from someone who understands both sports medicine and the unique physical challenges of emergency response.
As National Athletic Training Month highlights the important role athletic trainers play across health care and sports, Bibb’s work in Longview shows how those same skills can help protect the health and readiness of the first responders who protect the community.
