American Medical Society for Sports Medicine
For Immediate Release May 08, 2017

UK Sports Medicine Leader Serves as AMSSM International Visiting Fellow

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – May 8, 2017 – The Chief Medical Officer for the Rugby Football Union, Simon Kemp, MBBS, MRCGP, MSc (SEM), is serving as the 2017 AMSSM International Visiting  Fellow during the 26th Annual Meeting of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine this week in San Diego, Calif.

Dr. Kemp is a sports medicine specialist in the United Kingdom, having served as the England Team Doctor for the Rugby World Cup in 2003 and 2007 and the Medical Director for the 2015 Rugby World Cup. His current research focuses on player load and injury, concussion and the injury risk of artificial turf.

As AMSSM’s 2017 International Visiting Fellow, Dr. Kemp has spent the past 10 days visiting sports medicine centers and lecturing in Los Angeles, Seattle and the San Francisco bay area. During the AMSSM Annual Meeting, Dr. Kemp will present lectures on load management for injury prevention and using video analysis to help prevent concussion (from a rugby perspective).

“Having a physician with Dr. Kemp’s expertise and experience adds great value to meeting,” said AMSSM President Matt Gammons. “We are so pleased he was willing to serve as the International Traveling Fellow and allow us to learn from his perspectives on the treatment and prevention of sports injuries.”

The purpose of the AMSSM Traveling Fellowship program is to encourage academic interchange, shared research and exploration of common clinical interests among sports medicine leaders throughout the world. The experience includes the opportunity to view live patient encounters, tour sports medicine facilities, share cases and spend time with regional experts in sports medicine.

“Being awarded an AMSSM Travelling Fellowship is a huge honor,” Dr. Kemp said. “I look forward to visiting the sports medicine centers, discussing challenging issues in sports medicine, exploring possible future collaborations and participating in the AMSSM Annual Meeting. This is a great opportunity for shared learning, and I have no doubt it will help influence my own sports medicine practice and assist in the continued development of the specialty in the UK.”

The second phase of the 2017 Fellowship will be a return visit to the United Kingdom from three U.S. Traveling Fellows. The Traveling Fellowship tour will take place from Sept. 30 - Oct. 14, 2017 and conclude with presentations at the joint meeting of the Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine and British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine.

This program was made possible by the generous support the AMSSM Foundation received from DJO Global. AMSSM wishes to thank DJO Global for its educational support of this exchange of ideas and knowledge by world leaders in sports medicine.

About the AMSSM Annual Meeting: The 2017 conference, with more than 1,800 sports medicine physicians attending from throughout the United States and around the world, explores current decisions, controversies as well as best practices related to Medicine in Motion that defines the clinical practice of sports medicine. The conference features lectures and research addressing the most challenging topics in sports medicine today including overhead athlete care, military medicine, sports performance training, youth sports, professional athlete care, leg pain, mental health in athletes, current sports medicine topics and much more.

About the AMSSM: AMSSM is a multi-disciplinary organization of 3,400+ sports medicine physicians dedicated to education, research, advocacy and the care of athletes of all ages. The majority of AMSSM members are primary care physicians with fellowship training and added qualification in sports medicine who then combine their practice of sports medicine with their primary specialty. AMSSM includes members who specialize solely in non-surgical sports medicine and serve as team physicians at the youth level, NCAA, NFL, MLB, NBA, WNBA, MLS and NHL, as well as with Olympic teams. By nature of their training and experience, sports medicine physicians are ideally suited to provide comprehensive medical care for athletes, sports teams or active individuals who are simply looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle. www.amssm.org