Sports Medicine & Athletic Training
Clinton Physical Therapy Center’s licensed and certified athletic trainer provides professional training services to local schools and athletic associations. Working in conjunction with physicians, coaches and athletes, our trainer provides constructive advice on performance improvement while avoiding injuries that can derail progress or cut short a promising career. We provide information vital to avoiding injuries, and will suggest and direct rehabilitative care, if needed. An Athletic Trainer provides the link between organized sports and the medical community for implementation of injury prevention, emergency care and rehabilitation.
Clinton Physical Therapy Center is recognized as one of East Tennessee’s premier rehabilitation facilities. Our specialized equipment, programs, measuring tools and highly trained therapists and athletic trainer help injured athletes recover. We interact closely with our patients to promote optimum recovery and reduce the possibility of re-injury.
Competitive Season Coverage and Injury Assessment
The training staff at Clinton Physical Therapy Center provides athletic training coverage for Anderson County High School. We are present at all home and away football games and most home games for all other sports during the season. We also help coordinate sideline coverage by orthopedic physicians at all football games.
The ability to assess injuries that occur during the course of a game is imperative to the safety of the athletes. Assessment and Intervention for both minor and major injuries are of concern and may make the difference in an athlete’s ability to continue playing or being taken out of a game. The Athletic Trainer relieves the coaches of the responsibility of determining an athlete’s return to play.
Orthotic Consultation & Fabrication
A large majority of the lower extremity overuse injuries occur as a result of poor foot mechanics. The force from the constant pounding of the feet is transmitted up the lower body potentially causing foot, knee, ankle and lower back pain. The use of orthotics, whether off the shelf or custom made, can minimize the impact of poor foot structure and mechanics by supporting the foot for optimal efficiency.
Orthopedic Referrals
If an injury during practice or a game is deemed serious enough to warrant a physician referral, we are able to utilize our relationships with area orthopedic offices to schedule prompt appointments.
Patellofemoral Program / Lower Quarter Screening
Young girls in competitive sports run a higher risk of lower extremity injuries than their male counterparts. This is due in part to the anatomy of the female body, especially the alignment of the hips and pelvis. Lower quarter screenings help identify those youngsters with a potentially higher risk of overuse injuries and address them before they happen. Teaching female athletes to jump and land with correct technique can help lower the risk of sustaining knee injuries especially ACL tears.
Pre-season Screening
Injury prevention is one of our main goals. Knowing an athlete’s physical strengths and weaknesses can help prepare athletes during their pre season conditioning, lessening the risk of injury.
Sports Enhancement Program / Off-Season Conditioning
In conjunction with our Take Charge Fitness Program, we have developed sport specific Sports Enhancement programs for local sports teams at the high school and middle school levels as well as individual athletes who wish to develop their skills for speed, agility, reaction time, strength, power, balance / coordination, flexibility and core strength.
Sports Injury Screens
The Athletic Trainer and other staff are available for sports injury screening. An injury may not seem serious at the time but sometimes problems may start to appear hours or even days later. We are available for quick sports injury screens to help determine if conservative care is appropriate or if a referral to your family physician or orthopedic physician is warranted. We are usually able to accommodate same day appointment requests. If necessary, a report can be sent back to the coach with our recommendations.