Sports Medicine

Sports medicine is not a single specialty, but an area that combines the services of health care professionals, researchers and educators from a wide variety of disciplines to provide treatment and preventive care for athletes, both amateur and professional. The full concept of sports medicine includes specialty physicians and surgeons, athletic trainers, physical therapists, coaches and others. Representing a growing orthopedic subspecialty, sports medicine in the orthopedic sense is focused on relieving pain and providing healing and quick recovery (rehabilitation) of injured athletes to their full capability.

Sports medicine services are provided in the Stevens Point (Portage County), Rhinelander (Oneida County) and Minocqua/Woodruff (Vilas County) areas by Ministry Health Care athletic trainers, who counsel athletes on injury prevention techniques while assisting with training to improve strength and performance. All three programs include outpatient physical therapy and oversight by a board-certified physician medical director.

Physicians in Ministry’s orthopedic program are part of an interdisciplinary team that work together to bring comprehensive support to athletes, athletic programs and active individuals. Patients in this field of care can include school-age athletes in organized competition; joggers, weight lifters or others engaging in personal fitness regimens, and “weekend warriors” — the hobby golfers, tennis players, canoeists and others prone to activity-related injuries.