Post by 50yardfan on Aug 17, 2011 11:17:27 GMT -5
In the game: Harrisburg Stampede doctor brings team approach to care
www.pennlive.com/bodyandmind/index.ssf/2011/08/in_the_game_athletes_rely_on_t.html
They keep the athletes in tape, in shape and ready to roll in central Pennsylvania. Team doctors and athletic trainers for the professional baseball, indoor football, soccer and hockey teams all share a love of sports and a commitment to being a team player, and feel fortunate to help the athletes perform. Fans might not notice them until a player gets hurt but it’s their long, irregular hours behind the scenes that keep the teams on their feet.
Dr. John Deitch found a way to stay on the playing field despite not being drafted out of college.
“When I finished my college baseball career no one wanted to sign me to a pro contract, so I figured it would be better to go to medical school,” laughed Deitch, head team physician for Harrisburg’s indoor football team, the Stampede. “I’ve been [involved in] sports my whole life. I knew if I couldn’t be directly involved in playing I wanted a role in caring for and helping the athletes be on the field playing.”
Deitch, a former multisport athlete at Susquehanna Twp. High School and third baseman at Elizabethtown College, brings a team approach to the Stampede’s care.
“It’s our job to get them into position as quickly and efficiently as possible so they can do what they love to do. I am just one piece of the puzzle,” said the director of sports medicine for Wellspan Health. While he provides physicals, medical care throughout the season, pre- and post-game rounds and game coverage, “it takes a real team approach to care for these athletes — other doctors, athletic trainers, physician assistants.”
In addition to keeping up with evolving concussion management practices, Deitch, 39, said the medical team sees ankles, knees and shoulders “taking the brunt of the injury rate.”
Deitch also has to make the tough calls on who is healthy enough to be on the field.
“Sometimes we have to protect the athlete from themselves, from that desire to compete so much that it overwhelms their own physical health,” he said. “It’s hard on the physician, too, because you want to see them out there. At the same time, our goal is not to keep athletes on the sidelines.”
Deitch gained plenty of experience in his six years as team physician for Penn State University’s baseball, swimming, diving and rugby teams and serving on the sidelines for the football team.
“With high-impact, high-speed sports there can be some very subtle things that can indicate an injury that my eye will see and your eye won’t,” he said.
While the Stampede only play five or six home games, Deitch balances his duties at Wellspan with providing coverage for area high school football teams and large events such as the Keystone State Games.
His time with young athletes has taught a lesson he can’t stop preaching: “When you play one sport all year, it leads to overuse, overload and overexertion and certainly burn out. Play multiple sports, play in your own neighborhood ... for fun. Develop athleticism before sports-specific skills.
“We as a society have professionalized youth sports to our youth’s detriment,” he said.
www.pennlive.com/bodyandmind/index.ssf/2011/08/in_the_game_athletes_rely_on_t.html
They keep the athletes in tape, in shape and ready to roll in central Pennsylvania. Team doctors and athletic trainers for the professional baseball, indoor football, soccer and hockey teams all share a love of sports and a commitment to being a team player, and feel fortunate to help the athletes perform. Fans might not notice them until a player gets hurt but it’s their long, irregular hours behind the scenes that keep the teams on their feet.
Dr. John Deitch found a way to stay on the playing field despite not being drafted out of college.
“When I finished my college baseball career no one wanted to sign me to a pro contract, so I figured it would be better to go to medical school,” laughed Deitch, head team physician for Harrisburg’s indoor football team, the Stampede. “I’ve been [involved in] sports my whole life. I knew if I couldn’t be directly involved in playing I wanted a role in caring for and helping the athletes be on the field playing.”
Deitch, a former multisport athlete at Susquehanna Twp. High School and third baseman at Elizabethtown College, brings a team approach to the Stampede’s care.
“It’s our job to get them into position as quickly and efficiently as possible so they can do what they love to do. I am just one piece of the puzzle,” said the director of sports medicine for Wellspan Health. While he provides physicals, medical care throughout the season, pre- and post-game rounds and game coverage, “it takes a real team approach to care for these athletes — other doctors, athletic trainers, physician assistants.”
In addition to keeping up with evolving concussion management practices, Deitch, 39, said the medical team sees ankles, knees and shoulders “taking the brunt of the injury rate.”
Deitch also has to make the tough calls on who is healthy enough to be on the field.
“Sometimes we have to protect the athlete from themselves, from that desire to compete so much that it overwhelms their own physical health,” he said. “It’s hard on the physician, too, because you want to see them out there. At the same time, our goal is not to keep athletes on the sidelines.”
Deitch gained plenty of experience in his six years as team physician for Penn State University’s baseball, swimming, diving and rugby teams and serving on the sidelines for the football team.
“With high-impact, high-speed sports there can be some very subtle things that can indicate an injury that my eye will see and your eye won’t,” he said.
While the Stampede only play five or six home games, Deitch balances his duties at Wellspan with providing coverage for area high school football teams and large events such as the Keystone State Games.
His time with young athletes has taught a lesson he can’t stop preaching: “When you play one sport all year, it leads to overuse, overload and overexertion and certainly burn out. Play multiple sports, play in your own neighborhood ... for fun. Develop athleticism before sports-specific skills.
“We as a society have professionalized youth sports to our youth’s detriment,” he said.