Sports Medicine Professionals and Athlete's Bill of Rights

The technology, and things combining understanding research, human machine. They function as a team working to prevent injury, educate athletes, and restore players to normal functioning through rehabilitation. They are sports medicine professionals.

Among this team of specialists:

1. athletic trainer
   
2. chiropractor
   
   
   
3. dentist
   
4. exercise physiologist
   
5. nutritionist
   
6. strength, fitness, and conditioning coach
   
7. optometrist
   
8. orthopedist
   
9. orthotistosteopath
   
10. podiatrist
    
11. physical therapist
    
12. psychologist
    
13. ophthalmologist
    

David Lamb, past president of the prestigious American College of Sports Medicine, defined the field: "Sports medicine is the scientific and medical aspects of exercise and athletics."

More specifically, Professor Henry Miller, M.D., of Wake Forest University in North Carolina divided sports medicine into three categories:

1. Athletic medicine-the evaluation, conditioning, and prevention and treatment of injuries.
   
2. Research-the physiological, biochemical, bio-mechanical, and behavioral aspects of athletic medicine. Includes, finding new methods more successful and satisfactory than the present ones.
   
3. Prevention and rehabilitation of chronic and degenerative disease associated with sports and athletics.
   

A further clarification can be obtained from the American College of Sports Medicine, which is not a college in the traditional sense but a professional society composed of over 10,000 members. Its constitution states that the society is:

A multidisciplinary professional and scientific society dedicated to the generation and dissemination of knowledge concerning the motivation, responses, adaptation and health of persons engaging in exercise. Specifically, the college is concerned with:

1. Basic physiological, biochemical, biomedical, and behavioral mechanisms associated with exercise.
   
2. Improvement and maintenance of functional capacities for daily living.
   
3. Prevention and rehabilitation of chronic and degenerative diseases.
   
4. Evaluation and conditioning of athletes.
   
5. Prevention and treatment of injuries related to sports and exercise.
   

The organization, founded in 1954, has provided guidance and knowledge to sports medicine professionals and athletes in terms of the latest athletic health procedures based upon clinical practice and serious research. The college publishes position papers as well as research and information publications, sponsors research grants, certifies certain sports medicine personnel, and conducts workshops and conferences.

The explosion of sports injuries and serious concern about permanent damage resulted in the joint proclamation by the American Medical Association and the National Federation of State High School Athletic Associations of the Athletes Bill of Rights. Sports medicine personnel, coaches, athletes, and others should carefully examine the list.

The Athlete's Bill of Rights

Proper conditioning helps to prevent injuries by hardening the body and increasing resistance to fatigue.

1. Are the prospective players given directions and activities for pre-season conditioning?
   
2. Is there a minimum of two weeks of practice before the game or contest?
   
3. Is the player required to warm up thoroughly prior to the participation?
   
4. Are substitutions made without hesitation when players evidence disability?
   

Careful coaching leads to skillful performance, which lowers the incidence of injuries.

1. Is emphasis given to safety in teaching techniques and elements of play?
   
2. Are injuries carefully analyzed to determine causes and suggest preventative programs?
   
3. Are tactics discouraged that may increase the hazards and thus the incidence of injuries?
   
4. Are practice periods carefully planned and of a reasonable duration?
   

Good officiating promotes the enjoyment of the games as well as the protection of the players.

1. Are players as well as coaches thoroughly schooled in the rules of the games?
   
2. Are rules and regulations strictly enforced in practice periods as well as in games?
   
3. Are officials employed who are qualified both emotionally and technically for their responsibilities?
   

Right equipment and facilities serve a unique purpose in protection of players.

1. Is the best protective equipment provided for contact sports?
   
2. Is careful attention given to proper fitting and adjustment of equipment?
   
3. Is equipment properly maintained, and are worn and outmoded items discarded?
   
4. Are proper areas for play provided and carefully maintained?
   

Adequate medical care is necessary in the prevention and control of athletic injuries.

1. Is there a thorough pre-season health history and medical examination taken?
   
2. Is a physician present at contests and readily available during practice sessions?
   
3. Does the physician make the decision as to whether an athlete should return to play following injury during games?
   
4. Is authority from a physician required before an athlete can return to practice after being out of play because of a disabling injury?
   
5. Is the care given to athletes by coach or trainer limited to first aid and medically prescribed services?
   

Obviously, adherence to these guidelines can serve to reduce the incidence of athletic injuries. Sports medicine personnel can make an important contribution through publicizing and orienting the athletic community to these suggestions.

Despite the apparently varied background of those involved in sports medicine, a common thread runs through their backgrounds: they have a greater interest and knowledge about science than most Americans; they have an academic orientation(most attend graduate or professional school following completion of college); they demonstrate a human service orientation-a willingness to help people; they attempt to add new knowledge to their profession by sharing successful clinical practices and experimental research results; they enjoy people; and they like athletics and sports.

Considerable opportunities for variation exist in the sports medicine career cluster. People not wishing a lengthy college commitment might consider a position as a sports physical therapy assistant, while those more academically inclined might consider the life of the sports psychologist. Similarly, within the specialties, opportunities exist for several emphases. For example, an orthopedist would have these options: working at a sports medicine center while seeing patients and conducting research, or assisting a local high school as teams' physician and maintaining a private practice emphasizing sports medicine.