What to Expect from a Career in the Specialized Field of Sports Medicine

Career, Education, Health & Fitness /

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If you are inspired by physicians like Dr James P Devellis, one of the most respected sports medicine physicians in the world, then you are in luck. There are some fantastic career opportunities out there for those who want to work with a large variety of people, while focusing on physical activity and sports at the same time, but from a medical perspective. The field of sports medicine is wide and varied and offers a lot of professional advantages. It is a very lucrative career, as well as one for which there is a huge demand. If you are trained in this field, you are pretty much guaranteed a job as well.

What Is Sports Medicine?

There are two key areas of expertise within the field of sports medicine:

  1. Preventing and treating injuries in athletes, be they professional or amateur.
  2. Enhancing the performance of athletes, usually at a pro or semi-pro level.

Sports medicine professionals treat cyclists, runners, soccer players, football players, baseball players, hockey players, Olympic athletes, and so on. In fact, there is a need for specialists within any sport. Ultimately, your goal will be to ensure those people you treat can achieve their top performance and that they are always in the best health possible.

Careers in Sports Medicine

Because the field of sports is so wide and varied, so is sports medicine. Some of the options available to you include:

  • Sports medicine physicians, who have gone through medical school before specializing. They learn how to diagnose injuries and what their best treatment option is.
  • Sports medicine physical therapist, who mainly focus on rehabilitation after an athlete has sustained an injury, or has muscle or join problems. These specialists are certified physical therapists rather than doctors.

Getting an Education

Because sports medicine is such an important field, there are colleges all over the country where you can obtain a degree. Many of the better schools will also support you with a job placement as part of your program. It is important that you look into the different schools and certifications that are out there, as well as their accreditation. Do take out a subscription to the American Journal of Sports Medicine as well, which is where you will find lots of information about the discipline and its latest developments. In fact, if you want to become a sports medicine physician, membership of journals like that one is a prerequisite.

A career in sports medicine is the perfect choice for many people. There is an absolute need for those who have these types of skills, because sport is such an important part of so many people’s lives. An injury of a top athlete affects so many more people than just that person, for instance. There’s the team, the coach, the sponsors, and of course the fans, to name but a few. Making sure these athletes, who are role models for so many people, can perform as best they can and as healthily as they can, is incredibly important.