Solving the Athletic Patient Puzzle
Stephen Clark, PT, DPT, MHS, OCS, MBA

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Know the Sport
To be a successful sports medicine physical therapist, you must understand the specific mechanics of the athlete’s sport.  Physical therapists are experts at breaking down the kinetic and kinematic movement chain. 

If you know the sport, you are way ahead of the game – baseball, soccer, football, basketball, volleyball, and swimming should be readily known by the therapist.  The therapist needs to know the names of the positions, time of the game, and basic rules so they can “walk the talk” with the athlete.  However, if the therapist is unfamiliar with the sport, there are a number of fast track ideas the therapist can use to quickly learn about it.  The first is to ask the athlete to “show me” the movement that hurts. 

It sounds simple, but all athletes love to show you their “move” whether it is the strength required for drawing the bow for an Olympic archer, the lower extremity movement required to initiate a plie in second position, or the arm angle to make a curve ball” fall off the table.”  The second is to gather information about the particular sport from TV, the Internet, magazines, books, friends, or any other appropriate source. 

The third is to actually attend a game with the patient even if they are not playing.  You will be surprised at how much information you can learn in a short period of time.  Remember you do not need to play the particular sport to be a successful athletic physical therapist, but you had better be able to know what you are talking about and be able to explain it to the athlete.

Tis the Season
It used to be easy to remember the exact season for a particular sport.  One season followed another, and an athlete was usually in the off season, preseason, or mid season.  Now, particularly youth and high school athletes are playing their sport year round for school, clubs, and camps.  The athletic physical therapist must understand each patient’s  individual schedule and season.  Rehab goals and training will be different based on the timing of the athlete’s season.  Are you trying to get the athlete healthy for a regular season game or would you rather have the athlete sit out this game to play in the play-offs?  A lot of the time, when an athlete is reaching the end of their competitive season, the athletic therapist is more likely to be trying to get the athlete to participate at their highest possible level and keeping them competitive.  If the athlete is injured during a club sport or less competitive season, the therapist has more time to rehab the athlete.

Integrate Coaches and Team Athletic Trainers
After all you have done with the athletic patient, you still cannot simulate team drills, contact, equipment, and game situations.  There comes a time when the athlete must work in combination with their athletic physical therapist and the team position coaches and trainers.  This is where knowing the sport helps.  The therapist understands what the athlete is safely capable of doing and allows a reintegration back into the sport while still under the supervision of the medical team and direct instruction from the coaches.  The therapist, athletic trainer, and coaches are all available to discuss the athlete’s safe and successful return back to their sport.