Anthony Miniaci, MD, of the Cleveland Clinic and Russell Warren, MD, of Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City highlighted conflicts of interest and discussed the future of sports medicine at the AAOS Annual Meeting in San Diego, according to Med Page Today.
Here are five details to know:
1. Medical groups often pay to treat players in exchange for signage and other sponsorship advantages. Dr. Miniaci and Dr. Warren advocate against this practice.
2. A physician for the Cleveland Browns of the NFL and an orthopedic consultant for the Toronto Blue Jays of the MLB, Dr. Miniaci explained, "This has evolved into a business now. At the professional level, we have become commodities of the league." Dr. Warren is a former team physician for the New York Giants of the NFL. He said, "You don't have to [pay teams] and you shouldn't."
3. The physicians also urged their colleagues to stand up to coaches who call on injured players to play and advised all sports medicine specialists to get on the same page with leagues, teams, players, agents and players' associations.
4. The 2016 Football Players Health Study at Boston-based Harvard University urged teams to hire independent medical specialists to treat players on the field. Dr. Warren strongly rejected the idea, citing team physicians' knowledge about players' histories as too important to ignore. Team physicians must recognize and consider all conflicts of interests when treating professional athletes.
5. Both physicians attributed their roles as team physicians as helping them build a practice and business, improving their professional reputations and ultimately improving job satisfaction.
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