Program Basics

• Structure

  Most of the fellowship experience is one-on-one learning with an assigned attending staff member. The fellow’s schedule mirrors the attending staff’s schedule: two days a week in the clinic, two days in the operating room, two sessions each week in the training room and one day free to pursue research and prepare for conferences.
  
  This format allows fellows a very close exposure to the attendings’ thought processes, including:
  

  • Clinical evaluation and test ordering
  • Decision-making in the clinic
  • Preoperative counseling and preparation
  • Intra-operative decision-making
  • Post-operative decision-making involving wound care, precautions, physical therapy and activity progression

  This experience of providing continuity of care to athletic patients is a vital component of the fellowship program.

• Goals

  The Ohio State University Orthopedic Surgery Sports Medicine Fellowship is designed for fellows to:
  

  • Refine his or her ability to critically evaluate an athletic injury through history, physical exam, differential diagnosis and appropriate ordering and interpretation of X-rays, MRIs, bone scans and other imaging
  • Refine his or her ability to develop treatment options with understanding of surgical risks and benefits, physical therapy modalities and exercises
  • Appropriately apply these abilities in several environments including the office setting, the training room and at-event coverage
  • Enhance his or her surgical skills and interoperative decision-making via supervised hands-on surgical experiences
  • Become educated in post-operative patient evaluation and rehabilitation programs
  • Be exposed to the multidisciplinary aspect of caring for athletes with interaction and exposure to athletic trainers, physical therapists, primary care sports medicine specialists and psychologists
  • Become familiar with sports medicine literature and develop the ability to critically review it
  • Experience the process of producing a publishable, quality research project

   

  
  

• Outside of the clinic

  In Ohio State training rooms, the fellow has some autonomy with patient care but primarily has a staff member present to review cases and make decisions.
  
  At high schools, the fellow serves as the primary source of orthopedic care both on the sidelines and in the training room. He or she has back-up support provided by the Sports Medicine staff.
  
  In the operating room, the fellow has significant hands-on experience progressing from first assistant to primary surgeon with direct supervision.
  

  The fellow may sometimes supervise resident clinic cases with the residents. This has been a positive educational experience for both the fellows and the residents. The fellow is involved in preseason physicals for many of the teams at Ohio State as well as in-season event coverage and training room exposure. The fellow is also expected to perform exit physicals with decision-making regarding off-season rehabilitation and conditioning.

• An important part of a team

  At Ohio State, the fellow is a member of the Sports Medicine team providing care to the athletes in conjunction with the Orthopedic Sports Medicine staff, the Primary Care Sports Medicine staff and the Primary Care Sports Medicine fellows. The fellow goes to an Ohio State training room twice every week (three times a week during football season). In the training room, the fellow observes, assists or is autonomous in the evaluation and treatment of athletes. Support and supervision are always close. Athletics trainers are present at every training room session.
  

  
  

  
  

• Duties and Responsibilities

  The Sports Medicine fellow is responsible for the in-patients of the attending staff member to which he or she is assigned. The fellow is not responsible for any orthopedic trauma patients who may be assigned to the inpatient service or for any formal emergency department call other than the care of Ohio State athletes who may be injured and transferred to the emergency department.
  
  The fellow is responsible for attending the Sports Medicine clinics of the faculty to whom he or she is assigned. While in the Sports Medicine clinic, the fellow is directly supervised by the attending staff with discussion of differential diagnosis, ordering and interpretation of diagnostic tests, as well as the development of treatment plans.
  

• Additional experiences

  The fellows also have sporting event and game coverage responsibilities. In addition to clinical teaching, the fellows have a didactic teaching schedule. Sports Medicine Journal Club takes place once a month. Classic and current articles are reviewed during this conference. The fellows are responsible for reading and being prepared to present the articles during the journal clubs meetings that are attended by faculty members who also critique the articles.
  
  Our fellows are also required to attend any orthopedic grand rounds that are appropriate to Sports Medicine. Volunteer experiences are available treating resident indigent or prison cases. The fellows have found this to be quite a positive educational experience and continue to volunteer.
  
  Each Sports Medicine fellow is required to complete a research project during the year and formally present it during the annual Mallory-Coleman Research Day in April.