Mission
Statement
"Healthy
student athletes have higher self-esteem, higher
grades, better attendance, and better behavior. They are less
likely to use drugs or join a gang, more likely to graduate high
school and recieve college scholarships. Our mission is clear."
The
West Coast Sports Medicine Foundation
Overview
of Foundation
The West Coast Sports Medicine Foundation ("Foundation") is, a
non-profit, 501(C)3 charitable organization. A Board of Directors
comprised of medical, law, business and other community leaders
governs the Foundation. The Foundation was founded in 1994 to
provide all high school students with the opportunity to participate
in interscholastic sports, reduce and mitigate injuries through
proper athletic training, improve athletic performance and provide
necessary sports accident health insurance for students, enabling
them to participate in interscholastic sports and have access
to quality sports medicine care.
Overview
of the Team to Win, Sports Medicine Youth Program
The Team to Win ("teamtowin"), Sports Medicine Youth Program was
co-created by Keith S. Feder, M.D., a Board certified orthopedic
surgeon who serves as Medical Director of the Team to Win program, and
Jill Sleight, a Certified Athletic Trainer and Director of Team
to Win.
This
community out-reach program operates year round, including summers
and is free to all participating students.
In the 1994/1995 school year, the Foundation launched its sports
medicine youth program, which initially included six Los Angeles
area schools and served 3,000 at-risk high school students athletes.
Today, this program serves 13,000 students in 22 high schools
throughout Los Angeles County.
Population Served
This innovative program serves 12,000 male and female high school
students in schools located throughout Los Angeles County. More
than 80% of the students are from diverse, multi-cultural backgrounds.
More than 55% of the youth served by this program are economically
disadvantaged.
Benefits to Youth
The
Sports Medicine Youth Program has a positive effect on the lives
of the youth it serves. Participation in interscholastic sports
promotes teamwork and a healthy lifestyle, encourages cooperation
and understanding, helps foster and build relationships, enhances
equal opportunity and impacts valuable lessons and skills needed
in life to survive. Through athletic training, students learn
how to set goals and meet challenges. These students are less
likely to use drugs or join a gang and more likely to graduate
from high school and pursue higher education.
Components of the Sports Medicine Youth Program
Injury
Prevention
A key element of this program is its focus on reducing the number
and severity of injuries to high school student athletes. This
program provides physicians trained in sports medicine to treat
students on-site, thus ensuring that each injury receives prompt
and appropriate care. Further, this successful program incorporates
an inter-disciplinary medical team, managed by Keith S. Feder,
M.D., which utilizes the latest in scientific sports performance
evaluation and program design to minimize the incident of injuries
while at the same time optimizing each student athlete's performance.
Sports Accident Insurance
Sports accident insurance coverage is a critical component of
the program. California State law mandates that high school students
must have insurance to participate in interscholastic sports.
Unlike San Francisco or New York, Los Angeles does not provide
sports accident insurance coverage to its students.
The Problem
Studies indicate that there are over 700,000 youths in Los Angeles
alone, between 0 and 18 years of age that are not covered by insurance.
In addition, more than 55% of the student population in Los Angeles
live at or below the poverty line and are eligible for free or
low cost meals. This includes the same population group that is
required to purchase medical insurance to participate in interscholastic
sports. Financial constraints prevent these students from participating
in interscholastic sports, accessing quality sports medicine care
and receiving proper athletic training.
United States Senator Barbara Boxer became aware of this problem
and in September 1998, requested that the "General Accounting
office undertake a national survey to determine the number of
students who are unable to participate in school-based sports
activities due to lack of health insurance coverage.
The Solution
Team to Win provides much more! Each participating high school
is provided with an on-site Certified Athletic Trainer. The American
Medical Association has long recognized Certified Athletic Trainers
as an allied health care professional. In fact, there is overwhelming
and remarkable consistent evidence that athletic trainers reduce
the level of athletic injuries by 41%. Certified Athletic Trainers
are highly educated and skilled professionals whose work is vital
to the health and safety of student athletes. In addition, this
extraordinary program provides scientifically designed strength
and conditioning programs, which further serve to reduce the rate
of injury.
Further more, team to win provides physician coverage at all football
games, thus ensuring that each injury receives prompt and appropriate
care. In addition, this program provides on-site pre-participation
physical examinations, conducted by both an internist and orthopedic
physician, which include a general and an orthopedic exam.
Additional Program Components
Other program components include the provision of medical supplies
to each participating high school, as well as monthly in-service
meetings for coaches and trainers and first aid and CPR certification
for coaches and athletic trainers.
In addition, students are also provided with injury prevention
workshops, a vast roster of fellowship trained physicians and
surgeons to provide professional sports medicine care, strength
and conditioning workshops, private physical therapy clinics,
diagnostic testing, corrective surgery, and postoperative rehabilitation.
Student Mentoring Program
Students can also participate in mentoring and student training
internships. Students interested in becoming student athletic
trainers may enroll in a summer course, which involves basic sports
medicine care, include first aid and CPR, basic athletic training,
injury care and taping techniques. After students complete this
program, they are eligible to become student trainers at their
schools. Students who are interested in the sports medicine field
or any other medical related field are also eligible to participate
in the student internship program.
24
Hour Fitness
Students are also provided with free access to 24 Hour Fitness
Centers located throughout Los Angeles. The Centers opens their
clubs to the TTW high school athletes from 2:30 P.M., to 5:30
P.M., Monday through Friday. Call Team Sports to sign up your
school team at 1-800-499-1053.
Educational
Program
The program also holds quarterly community educational seminars
for students, parents, trainers, coaches and administrators on
nutrition, the avoidance of drugs, and on injuries and injury
prevention. The injury prevention clinics review the relevant
anatomy, mechanisms of injury, pathology, treatments and return
to play guidelines. In addition, this program provides Summer
Sports Camps for the students. Some of these include: speed strength
camps, weight training camps, strength and conditioning camps,
track and field camps, football, basketball, soccer camps and
more.
Scholar
Athlete Award of Excellence
Students can also vie for the Scholar Athlete Awards of Excellence.
One male and female from each of the participating schools is
honored for excelling in scholarly work, community service and
interscholastic sports. A panel of coaches, athletic directors
and administrators from each of the schools nominates the honorees.
Each year these Athletes are honored at a ceremony hosted by The WCSMF.
Injury
Prevention Projects
The Foundation serves on the California Interscholastic Federation
Health and Safety Commission. This commission formulates sports
injury treatment and prevention guidelines aimed at parents, coaches
and administrators specifically for pediatric and adolescent school
age athletes. The Foundation is in the process of completing a
 manual,
which will outline treatment and prevention guidelines and include
information on relevant anatomy, mechanism of injury, acute treatment,
on-going treatment, options and return to play criteria. This
Treatment and Prevention Guidelines Manual will be distributed
to high schools statewide. The Foundation is currently developing
a proprietary injury surveillance program to implement a statewide
project to assess the most common types of injuries in high school
sports. The results of this surveillance program will serve to
create a proactive plan to decrease the incidence of injuries.
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