Local High School Athletes to Undergo Free Physicals at Hospital for Special Surgery

New York, NY—July 30, 2015

For the fifth consecutive year, Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) is offering free pre-season physicals for local junior varsity and varsity football players in the Public Schools Athletic League (PSAL). The “combine” will take place at the James M. Benson Sports Rehabilitation Center and Tisch Sports Performance Center at HSS.

HSS offers this screening to ensure the young athletes are fit to play and have no underlying medical problems before the football season starts. It is mandatory for all NYC high school students to receive medical clearance before playing a school sport.

"We are meeting a need in our own community by providing these free screenings to youth athletes," said Dr. James Kinderknecht, primary care sports medicine physician at HSS and medical director of the PSAL Clinic. "We remain committed to providing these students with easy, reliable access to medical care."

Students without health insurance are often forced to sit out of school sports if they can’t afford the required pre-season physical. With this program, not only are they receiving the necessary screening but it is being performed by the same doctors who treat the New York Giants and other professional sports teams.

"We go beyond the traditional physical by assessing their muscle strength and flexibility to help injury prevention," said John Cavanaugh, PT, ATC, SCS, clinical supervisor, HSS Sports Rehabilitation and Performance Center, who organizes the screenings. "These screenings are just one example of our high-quality care of young athletes in our community."

Player evaluations will include cardiovascular and orthopedic screening, medical history and screening, flexibility testing, lower abdominal strength testing, lower extremity power testing, balance for a concussion management baseline, body fat percentage measurement and posture assessment.

The testing will be performed by primary care physicians, orthopedic surgeons, pediatricians, physician assistants, certified athletic trainers, physical therapists, exercise physiologists and registered nurses.

For more information about the screening and the PSAL Football Clinic, please visit: http://www.hss.edu/psal.asp.

Participation is free but pre-registration is required. To register, please contact John Cavanaugh at hssmedicalcombine@hss.edu.