The Olympics

The Olympics

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News, information and stories about the Olympic Games in Athens 2004 and the Olympics in general up until 2007.

Monday, September 11, 2006

Shortage of Olympic Doctors

Despite the fact that the 2012 London Olympics are still 6 years away, doctors are warning that the UK has too few specialist doctors in sports and exercise medicine to be able to cope with the injuries that could occur at the 2012 Olympics.

Charles Galasko, of the Royal College of Physicians, said that 30 specialists would be needed. Currently there are only 3 specialists in the UK at the moment.

It seems that whilst doctors in other specialist fields, such as orthopaedics, treat sports injuries, they do not have the all-round expertise needed.

Quote:

"The orthopaedic surgeon can deal with the ankle injury but would not necessarily be in a position to deal with an abdominal injury that may have occurred at the same time."

I am sure that this is an unnecessary concern, as the competitors will doubtless bring their own specialists with them in their entourages.

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