MADISON HOSPITAL

By Contributed

Student-athletes rely on Huntsville Hospital

Did you know for the past 21 years, Huntsville Hospital SportsCenter has been providing certified, licensed athletic trainers for local high schools, middle schools, universities and professional teams? Because of their large size and number of sports teams, Madison’s high schools, Bob Jones and James Clemens, each have two Sports Center athletic trainers. The program also provides an athletic trainer who splits his time between Liberty and Discovery middle schools. Best of all, the Sports Center’s services are absolutely free to the participating schools.

Bob Jones High athletic director Tom Runnion explained the Sports Center program’s importance in a recent interview. “Knowing that we have medical professionals caring for our student-athletes takes the decision of when to return to action out of the coaches’ hands,” he said. “Our parents feel at ease as well, knowing they don’t have to run to the emergency room every time their son or daughter has a minor injury.”

Sports Center athletic trainers are on the sidelines for every game and every practice at their assigned school. They evaluate and treat sports injuries, direct preventive care and injury rehabilitation efforts, make sure equipment fits properly, perform pre-season sports physicals and more.

If a student-athlete breaks a bone or tears a ligament, the athletic trainer can facilitate appointments with orthopedic surgeons at The Orthopaedic Center, which has an office on the Madison Hospital campus. In fact, well-known orthopedic surgeon Dr. John Greco is medical director of the Sports Center program.

All of us at Madison Hospital are proud to support a program that provides such valuable benefits to our community’s student-athletes and their families.