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JUNE/JULY 2013 MACON MAGAZINE I 75 A D V E R T I S E M E N T Why did you become a sports medicine physician? "My interest has always been to help others. As a teenager, I volunteered as a 'candy striper' at a hospital and thought about becoming a nurse. My father suggested becoming a doctor instead and the idea really appealed to me. In addition to volunteering, I was very active in sports in high school, playing every season. Unfortunately, the more sports I played, the more injuries I experienced and I looked to others for assistance in overcoming those injuries. During college, I suffered an injury playing basketball and met a sports medicine physician during the course of my treatment. Once I completed my medical training, I chose to specialize in sports medicine because of my knowledge and experience as a student athlete. Today, I routinely volunteer in high schools to mentor students in achieving their education and career goals, as well as serving as a source of medical education for the students, parents and coaches." What types of injuries do you see or treat most often in your practice? "I am board-certified in Pediatrics, Internal Medicine and Sports Medicine so the injuries I treat can vary from a simple ankle sprain to a torn ACL (anterior cruciate ligament), or a respiratory illness to exercise-induced asthma. I also attend many sporting events as a team physician and often interact with the athletes' families. As a result, it's not uncommon for me to treat an athlete's entire family for various ailments and injuries." What do you consider to be the most challenging aspect of your specialty? "The biggest challenge is getting athletes to understand the body's need for rest and when to implement it and when it's safe to 'push-through' and work the body harder. In this time when obesity is an issue even in our youth, exercise is a necessity. But, at the same time, continuous play increases the risk of injury—particularly in young adults and children whose bodies are still growing." What medical advances in the field of sports medicine in the last five years do you think have proven to be most successful? "The biggest advance has been the push to educate parents, coaches, and the public about preventing and treating concussions. Another is the presence of more sports medicine physicians at various athletic team events. As far as diagnostic tools, the use of ultrasound in determining a course of treatment has grown tremendously and proven to have huge benefits for patients because they not only avoid exposure to radiation through the typical x-ray, they also avoid the added expense of undergoing another diagnostic test." What do you enjoy most about your career as a sports medicine physician? "I enjoy the opportunity to provide comprehensive and complete care to the athlete as well as the weekend warrior, and the success in helping to get your average 'couch potato' exercising on a regular basis." Mercer Medicine Sports Medicine Clinic 1327 Stadium Drive, Macon, Georgia 31207 (On the Mercer University campus inside the Drake Field House) (478) 301-2382 A D V E R T I S E M E N T Associate Professor, Pediatrics and Internal Medicine Chief, Division of Sports Medicine Mercer University School of Medicine SHELLEY STREET CALLENDER MD, FAAP JUNE/JULY 2013 MACON MAGAZINE I 75