Athletic Trainers Play Key Role in AMC's Physical Rehab Department

SARANAC LAKE - A comprehensive and caring health care system relies upon a broad range of skills and abilities from specially trained individuals.

In the Physical Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine Department at Adirondack Medical Center, there is a core group of individuals who specialize in recognizing, treating, and preventing musculoskeletal injuries: athletic trainers.  These professionals practice under the direction of a physician, and are members of the National Athletic Trainers Association, which is recognized by the American Medical Association.  Duties of athletic trainers include prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of injuries.  They work in a wide variety of settings such as schools, colleges, professional sports, clinics, hospitals, corporations, industry, the military and the performing arts.

AMC has four Certified Athletic Trainers in its Rehabilitation Department: Dino Angelopoulos, Kari Fitzsimmons, Laurie King and Kevin Moody.  At AMC, their professional services involve working one-on-one with patients who have orthopedic issues and are seeking additional treatment beyond physical therapy.  They also work with individuals with past injuries who are seeking to become more fit and healthy to improve their quality of life.  The department also offers medically supervised exercise programs aimed at improving the quality of life for people with diseases or conditions such as diabetes or pulmonary disease.

AMC's athletic trainers also work closely with the local schools and colleges on a contract basis to assist student athletes by evaluating sports injuries, and providing medical coverage during competitions.  Among the various injuries a student athlete can receive, a concussion is one of the more serious.  AMC's athletic trainers administer the local concussion management program to provide evaluations and the referral of athletes into the medical system to undergo a multi-step process and sophisticated neurocognitive computerized testing.  The thoroughness of this process is to ensure the safe return of the student athlete to academic and athletic settings.

During the summer months, the athletic trainers provide a six- to eight-week strength and conditioning program for local high school athletes preparing for upcoming sport seasons. 

For the broader public, the athletic trainers at AMC offer Running Clinics to provide advanced evaluations of a runner's performance and movement in order to suggest proper footwear and runner-specific flexibility and strengthening exercises.

Beyond individual needs, the athletic trainers provide onsite medical coverage for summer programming including the CanAm Rugby Tournament, Lake Placid Soccer Centre, Section 7/10 All-Star Football Game and the New York State Regional Track and Field Competition.

For more information about Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine at AMC, go to www.amcCares.org and click on the "About AMC" tab found on the upper right-hand portion of the homepage.

CAPTION: AMC's Certified Athletic Trainers include Kevin Moody, front - left, Laurie King, front - right,
Kari Fitzsimmons, back - left, and Dino Angelopoulos.

Brief Biographical Sketches of AMC's Athletic Trainers:

(NOTE: ATC stands for Certified Athletic Trainer; CSCS stands for Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist)

Kari Fitzsimmons, ATC, CSCS
Title: Fitness Manager

• Supervisor of the Adirondack Medical Center MedFit, Fit for Life and Athletic Training Programs.
• Conducts the after school athletic development program at Lake Placid High School.

Education/Experience 

Bachelor's of Science, Athletic Training - Springfield College
Master's of Science, Athletic Training - Indiana State University
Fourteen years of experience in the field working with every age and ability level from the very impaired to Olympic medalists.

Dino Angelopoulos, ATC, CSCS
Title: Staff Athletic Trainer

• Provides weekly visits to AuSable Valley High School, Lake Placid High School and North Country Community College for student/athlete musculoskeletal injury evaluation and basic treatment.
• Provides onsite medical coverage for high school and college competitions
• Leads the AMC/Lake Placid MedFit Program

Education/Experience 
Bachelor of Science, Kinesiology, Athletic Training - University of New Hampshire
Erie Otters - Ontario Hockey League - Head Athletic Trainer
Berwick Academy - Head Athletic Trainer
Lake Placid Health and Fitness - General Manager, Director of Personal Training

Kevin Moody, ATC, CSCS
Title: Staff Athletic Trainer  

• Provides weekly visits to National Sports Academy and Saranac Lake High School for student/athlete musculoskeletal injury evaluation and basic treatment.
• Provides onsite medical coverage for selected high school competitions
• Leads the AMC/Saranac Lake MedFit program
• Assists in the AMC/Saranac Lake Fit for Life program

Education/Experience
Bachelor of Science, Physical Education, Athletic Training - SUNY Brockport
Master of Science Physical Education, Athletic Training - Indiana State University

Athletic trainer with the United States Olympic Committee for 27 years.  Medical staff member for several international games including the 1988, 1992 and 2006 Winter Olympic Games and the 2004 Summer Paralympic Games.  Head Athletic Trainer at the Lake Placid Olympic Training Center from 1982-2007 providing leadership for the performance medical program and supervision of services for the prevention, evaluation, treatment and rehabilitation of medical problems of athletes registered at the Center.

Laurie King, ATC, CSCS
Title: Staff Athletic Trainer

• Provides weekly visits to Tupper Lake High School and Paul Smith's College for student/athlete musculoskeletal injury evaluation and basic treatment sessions.
• Provides onsite medical coverage for selected high school / college competitions.
• Leads the AMC/Tupper Lake MedFit program.
• Leads the AMC/Tupper Lake Fit for Life program.
• Teaches an Introductory Sports Medicine class to Tupper Lake HS students considering careers in Sports Medicine.

Education/Experience
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology - Nazareth College of Rochester
Certified Exercise Specialist- Mount San Antonio College
Studies in Kinesiology and Athletic Training - California State University at Fullerton

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	Adirondack Medical Center's Bariatric Program and Dr. Michael Hill have been designated as a Center of Excellence by the American Society for Bariatric Surgery.