From Season to Season: The Importance of Continuity in Sports Medicine Care
When was the last time you visited a sports medicine specialist? Was it after an injury? Back when you were a high school athlete and required to complete regular physicals? Have you ever visited someone for sports medicine? If any of these apply, it may be time to visit Sievers Sports Medicine. Why? Because continuity in sports care is the key to great performance and good health.
In the medical field, “continuity of care” ensures you work with the same team to meet your healthcare needs. For example, did you see the same pediatrician or dentist growing up? That’s an example of continuity of care.
Continuity of sports care is hugely important for athletes. You need regular sports physicals to help identify potential issues before they become problems, and if you do suffer an injury, working with a sports medicine specialist who’s already familiar with your strengths and weaknesses can help improve your outcomes.
Sievers Sports Medicine serves athletes throughout the Portales area, and if you live here, we’d love to become your dedicated sports medicine provider! We offer both preventative and urgent care, meaning we’ll be here for you if you’re injured–or if you just want to improve your sports performance!
To learn more about all that we offer, keep reading. You can also call and speak to our friendly staff for more personalized information.
Understanding Continuity of Care
Imagine that you tear your ACL while in the middle of a game. What happens next?
- The athletic trainer provides immediate care and suggests you visit an urgent care facility for the next steps.
- You head to the emergency room, where the doctor on call runs some tests and informs you that you’ve suffered a full rupture–which means you’ll need surgery.
- A few days later, you visit your primary care doctor to receive a referral for an orthopedic surgeon.
- You work with the surgeon to prepare for your surgery–which goes off without a hitch.
- You work with a physical therapist at the hospital.
- You work with a different physical therapist at an outpatient clinic.
- After your PT clears you for activity, you find a sports medicine specialist to get a final checkup.
By the time you’re back on the field, you’ve worked with seven healthcare providers, only one of whom (the primary care physician) you had met before. That means you’ve seen six different providers unfamiliar with you at the initial appointment, which means you’ve had to introduce yourself and your needs six times. It’s also seven different times your paperwork has been shuffled around.
However, this example does illustrate two potential examples of continuous care. First up is the surgeon, who will meet with you before and after the procedure to ensure you know what to expect, provide recommendations for preparing, and ensure you’re healing property.
Another is the outpatient physical therapist. Post-surgical rehabilitation typically takes several weeks, during which time you’ll, ideally, work with the same PT as they progress you through your rehabilitative exercises.
In both situations, the continuous meetings allow your care provider to understand your requirements, strengths, and weaknesses–meaning they can more easily tailor your care and ensure you’re getting the treatment you need.
Continuity in Sports Care: Vital for Athletes
While everyone benefits from continuity of care, it’s essential for athletes. In fact, your favorite professional athletes almost certainly have a dedicated team of sports medicine providers, physical therapists, nutritionists, and more to ensure they’re playing at the top of their game.
But even if you’re not a professional, finding a dedicated sports medicine provider will offer many benefits. A sports medicine specialist is a physician who understands athletes’ unique needs and goals, making them better equipped to provide recommendations and treatments that will work for you. And working with one sports medicine specialist ensures they get to know you as an athlete.
For example, consider all the services we offer at Sievers Sports Medicine:
- Annual sports physicals, which will not only ensure you’re healthy but can help you improve your performance
- Sports-related injury care, including fractures, sprain and strains, and other orthopedic injuries
- Urgent care, which means we can see you the same day you’ve been injured
- Digital X-ray on site, which means we can easily diagnose many common sports injuries in-house
- Bracing, casting, and custom splinting services, so we can ensure an injury is protected as you identify the next steps in your treatment
- Regenerative medicine, such as PRP or stem cell injections, which will facilitate your healing and help manage pain
- Recommendations for exercises so you can start working to improve strength and mobility after an injury
Obviously, no one medical provider can do everything. However, our clinic does provide standard services that most athletes will need to take advantage of at least once in their lives. By choosing Sievers Sports Medicine, you can ensure better continuity in your sports, which means better outcomes.
Find Your Sports Care Here in Portales
Sievers Sports Medicine has a long history of working with athletes in our community, including athletes from several local schools. From yearly checkups to long-term rehabilitation, we offer the support and care you need to thrive on–and off–the field.
Ready to get started? Call us today to schedule an initial appointment!
Sources:
https://www.aafp.org/about/policies/all/continuity-of-care-definition.htmlhttps://bjgp.org/content/72/715/e84?ijkey=1435bcba80b63b8d30b2b1173ea0161ce2337f2f&keytype2=tf_ipsecsha