HSS Hosts First Annual Professional Sports Medicine Conference

New York, NY—July 17, 2017

Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) has a long specialized history of working with high-performing athletes, teams, agents, and families, enabling them to maintain long and healthy careers.  Our experts know what’s required to take care of players across the continuum of sports and for the first time, HSS brought together medical and training personnel from professional sports teams for a multi-disciplinary conference dedicated to the care of elite athletes.

The first annual HSS Professional Sports Medicine Conference was held July 14 in the Richard L. Menschel Education Center at HSS and featured physicians, physical therapists and athletic trainers that work with NCAA, NBA, WNBA, NFL, NHL, MLB, MLS, UFC and Olympic teams.

"We established this conference because of Hospital for Special Surgery’s unique position of leading the medical care of seven professional teams in the tristate area," said Bryan T. Kelly, M.D., chief of the Sports Medicine service at HSS. "It was a great opportunity to gather together top clinicians in one room to share best practices, research, network, and create a collaborative environment."

Professional athletes are at a greater risk of injury because of the physical demands of the sports themselves. It is imperative for medical personnel to utilize a proper performance evaluation and injury management plan in order to return each player to play safely and effectively.

The day started with dialogues about the different medical team roles in professional sports organizations then moved into case studies.  The case studies featured complex decision-making for an in-season injury including those to the hip, knee, shoulder and head.

"I was looking forward to connecting with other professionals in this elite group of medical teams from the tristate area," said Jim Ramsay, MS, CAT(C), head athletic trainer of the New York Rangers. "It was incredibly useful to compare notes and really learn from the body of knowledge represented here today. Also I continue to be amazed by the way our athletes receive care from HSS physicians and other clinical and support staff."

After lunch, there were focused interactive discussions about the patient-specific approach to treating and rehabilitating both professional and collegiate athletes. These sessions were also organized by type of injury including those to the: hip, knee cartilage and ligaments, shoulder, elbow, head, foot and ankle, hand and wrist, and spine.

The sessions covered both surgical and non-surgical care of athletic injuries, rehabilitation techniques and return to play strategies.

"I’ve never heard of or participated in a conference that brought together medical staff from different teams to share information, protocols and experiences with the common goal of better patient care across multiple sports," said Peter Asnis, M.D., head team physician and medical director of the Boston Bruins; head team orthopedist for the Boston Red Sox; and team physician for the New England Patriots. "Dr. Kelly has done an amazing job putting this conference together and under his direction, I know there will be more opportunities like this in the future."

HSS Sports Medicine is a team of 38 physicians who are dedicated to treating athletic injuries of the musculoskeletal system. Through care delivery, research and innovation, the department is elevating the practice of sports medicine on all levels.

Over a third of all professional teams in the U.S. have a member of their medical staff that trained at HSS. In addition, HSS treats more than 400 professional athletes a year, including athletes from 80 different professional teams and over 100 Division I programs. Over the past two years, HSS has treated players from over half of the teams in the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL combined.

For more information on HSS Sports Medicine, please visit www.hss.edu/sports.

Jim Ramsay, MS, CAT(C) with Bryan T. Kelly, MD, chief of the Sports Medicine service at HSS, and Peter Asnis, MD, at the 1st Annual HSS Professional Sports Medicine Conference.