{"id":7138,"date":"2019-08-26T08:00:07","date_gmt":"2019-08-26T13:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/blog\/?p=7138"},"modified":"2022-02-11T10:13:46","modified_gmt":"2022-02-11T16:13:46","slug":"sports-medicine-services-are-important","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/sports-medicine-services-are-important\/","title":{"rendered":"This tool is an athlete\u2019s best friend, but it doesn\u2019t fit in a gym bag"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A vital part of succeeding as an athlete is being able to show up healthy and perform at your best. That\u2019s why having the right kind of health care is vital to athletes of all kinds, whether you\u2019re a competitive athlete, a weekend warrior or you just play the sport of life, and you want to be able to enjoy evening walks and chasing your grandkids around the backyard.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/\">OSF HealthCare<\/a> understands the need for sports medicine services and how big their impact can be. OSF HealthCare specialists are helping athletes every day to avoid injuries or return to the game as quickly as can be done safely following an injury.<\/p>\n<h2>The first line of defense<\/h2>\n<p>Athletic trainers typically serve as the most visible member of a sports medicine team. In <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/blog\/class-is-in-session-improving-health-through-education\/\">LaSalle County, Illinois<\/a> and in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/st-francis\/services\/sports-medicine\/\">Escanaba, Michigan<\/a>, for two examples, OSF HealthCare has contracts with local high schools and colleges to provide athletic trainer services to their sports teams.<\/p>\n<p><strong><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-7188 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/sports-medicine-blog-sd1-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"football players on field\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/sports-medicine-blog-sd1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/sports-medicine-blog-sd1-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/sports-medicine-blog-sd1-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/sports-medicine-blog-sd1.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese services can greatly benefit the schools we work with,\u201d said Bradley Yates, the athletic trainer supervisor for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/locations\/osf-medical-group-orthopedics-ottawa-120108\/\">OSF Medical Group \u2013 Ottawa Orthopedics<\/a>. \u201cAthletic trainers provide the school with a health care professional whose sole job is the health and safety of the student athletes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur athletic trainers cover a vast majority of the practices and home games at their assigned schools. It would not be surprising for them to be one of the first people present to set up for the event and one of the last ones to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>School sports teams receive several benefits from having an athletic trainer around.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Trainers can:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Help create or review a facility Emergency Action Plan<\/li>\n<li>Help coordinate the emergency care and transportation of athletes<\/li>\n<li>Provide injury care, evaluation, follow-up treatment, and rehabilitation for athlete injuries<\/li>\n<li>Help with the selection and fitting of braces and other protective equipment, and can provide taping for the support of various injuries<\/li>\n<li>Help to determine when an athlete may safely return back to full participation<\/li>\n<li>Help develop conditioning programs and nutritional plans, and provide education on best practices for injury prevention<\/li>\n<li>Serve as a health care liaison, connecting the athletes to the correct <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/providers\/search\/\">OSF provider<\/a>, department or specialty they need<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>An athletic trainer could help save an athlete and their parents time and money by not needing to utilize an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/services\/specialties\/emergency\">ED<\/a> for simple sprains and strains that can be taken care of at the school or by advising the proper level of care when further medical expertise is needed.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-7144 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Sports-Medicine-Internal-2-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"athletic trainer icing a football player's knee\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Sports-Medicine-Internal-2-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Sports-Medicine-Internal-2-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Sports-Medicine-Internal-2-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Sports-Medicine-Internal-2.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Yates and his team of athletic trainers in north-central Illinois are part of the OSF HealthCare orthopedics practice and clinics in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/locations\/osf-medical-group-orthopedics-ottawa-120108\/\">Ottawa<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/locations\/osf-medical-group-orthopedics-streator-120140\">Streator<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/locations\/osf-medical-group-orthopedics-mendota-120173\">Mendota<\/a>. That helps create an unbroken continuum of care for athletes who need orthopedic surgery to treat an injury. Trainers can help communicate vital information about injury cases to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/providers\/search\/?specialty=109&amp;is_preferred=on&amp;near=61350&amp;max_distance=10&amp;facility=8&amp;gender=&amp;language=&amp;keywords=\">surgeons<\/a>. They also fit patients with any prescribed medical equipment, splinting or casting they require. The trainers also help athletes through the recovery and rehabilitation process and get back to their sport.<\/p>\n<p>In Escanaba, Michigan, however, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/st-francis\/services\/sports-medicine\/athletic-training\/\">athletic trainers<\/a> work under the supervision of a sports medicine physician, instead of orthopedic surgeons. It\u2019s another team model that in its first few months in Michigan has already proved to be effective.<\/p>\n<h2>Sports medicine thrives in an active community<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/providers\/keirsten-smith-1602132\">Keirsten Smith, MD<\/a>, has already seen how popular a sports medicine physician can be in an active community like Michigan\u2019s Upper Peninsula. It\u2019s a place where weekend warriors take advantage of nature\u2019s abundance and a focus on family helps drive the popularity of youth sports.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBeing active is a big part of the culture around here, and sports medicine is a specialty that is really filling a need in the community,\u201d Dr. Smith said.<\/p>\n<p>A sports medicine physician is a trained physician who has also completed a sports medicine fellowship, developing the skills to provide the non-surgical treatment of musculoskeletal injuries. What does \u201cmusculoskeletal\u201d mean? It\u2019s just a fancy word for your muscles and bones and their relationship to each other.<\/p>\n<p>For Dr. Smith, her sports medicine training came from her experience treating some of the most finely tuned top-level college athletes at the University of Alabama.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-7189 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/sports-medicine-blog-sd2-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"sports medicine specialist working in gym with student athlete\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/sports-medicine-blog-sd2-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/sports-medicine-blog-sd2-500x334.jpg 500w, https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/sports-medicine-blog-sd2-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/sports-medicine-blog-sd2.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Sports medicine physicians are experts at treating the following musculoskeletal injuries:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Acute injuries, like broken bones, ankle, knee and shoulder sprains and muscle strains<\/li>\n<li>Overuse injuries, such as <a href=\"http:\/\/healthlibrary.osfhealthcare.org\/Search\/1,739\">tendonitis<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/healthlibrary.osfhealthcare.org\/Search\/85,P00940\">tendinosis<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/healthlibrary.osfhealthcare.org\/Search\/85,P07843\">stress fractures<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Osteoarthritis<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>But Dr. Smith\u2019s expertise goes beyond musculoskeletal injuries. As a sports medicine physician, she also deals with several aspects of athlete health and performance, including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/blog\/preventing-concussion-in-young-athletes\/\">Concussions<\/a> and other head injuries<\/li>\n<li>Chronic or acute illness (such as infectious <a href=\"http:\/\/healthlibrary.osfhealthcare.org\/Search\/85,P00638\">mononucleosis<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/healthlibrary.osfhealthcare.org\/Search\/85,P00816\">asthma<\/a> or <a href=\"http:\/\/healthlibrary.osfhealthcare.org\/Search\/85,P00335\">diabetes<\/a>)<\/li>\n<li>Nutrition, supplements, ergogenic aids and performance issues<\/li>\n<li>Injury prevention<\/li>\n<li>\u201cReturn to play\u201d decisions for sick or injured athletes<\/li>\n<li>Recommendations on safe strength training and conditioning exercise regimens<\/li>\n<li>Healthy lifestyle promotion<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Dr. Smith\u2019s services have become very popular since she began practicing in Escanaba in mid-2019. She has treated competitive athletes from young children to adults, and has treated non-athletes looking to improve their quality of life.<\/p>\n<p>As athletes get back to activity after a year of COVID-19 cancelations and rescheduled seasons, an increase in chronic injuries has created an especially strong need for injury treatment and highlighted the importance of expert guidance to help athletes return to sports safely.<\/p>\n<p>If you suffer an injury that hampers your ability to move like you need, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/providers\/search\/\">ask your health care provider<\/a> if a sports medicine physician, orthopedic surgeon or athletic trainer can help you stay in the game.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A vital part of succeeding as an athlete is being able to show up healthy and perform at your best. That\u2019s why having the right kind of health care is vital to athletes of all kinds, whether you\u2019re a competitive athlete, a weekend warrior or you just play the sport of life, and you want [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":7187,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[294,735],"tags":[729,756,853,826],"coauthors":[692],"class_list":["post-7138","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-rehabilitation","category-preventive-health","tag-orthopedics","tag-osf-medical-group","tag-physical-therapy","tag-sports"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>This tool is an athlete&#039;s best friend | OSF HealthCare<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Sports medicine services are vital for keeping athletes of all ages happy and healthy. 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