The Sports Medicine Centre is a relatively recent investment of Hospital da Luz Coimbra and came to “shake things up” in the region, in terms of project, team and response capacity to the diverse needs of physical exercise of leisure or competition athletes and people with chronic disease. The specific project of this centre, the work here developed, the exams and therapies available, the team, and the various levels of operation are in highlight on a piece published by Diário de Coimbra this week. “We have a multidisciplinary team with the capacity to respond, in one same location, to the needs of athletes, but also to anticipate some of those needs – supporting performance, if we are talking about top-level athletes, or health, using physical exercise as therapeutic means to fight chronic diseases, namely obesity, hypertension, diabetes or respiratory diseases”, explains António Cruz Ferreira , the coordinator of the centre. “We are pioneers, and I believe there is no similar integrated and comprehensive response, inside a health unit, in the region”, he adds. “Everyone should practice physical exercise regularly”, further stresses the specialist, reminding one of the centres’ assets: “We are often unaware of our limits or how to exercise in all safety. In the Sports Medicine Centre, we are qualified to respond to that. Through previous global assessment, we can easily establish the limits, if any, to sports participation”. The centre stands out by its multidisciplinarity. The team comprises 13 specialists from different areas ensuring a dedicated and proximal follow-up to all athletes, and intervening at the level of prevention, rehabilitation and high performance: André Pereira (exercise physiology), António Mendes (orthopaedics), António Cruz Ferreira (sports medicine and GFM), Carlos Queirós (orthopaedics), Francisco Silva Gomes (orthopaedics), João Rovisco (rheumatology), Paulo Dinis (cardiology), Pedro Miguel Mendes (nutrition), Pedro Figueiredo (physical medicine and rehabilitation), Ricardo Frada (orthopaedics), Rita Ferreira da Silva (nutrition), and Tiago Roseiro (orthopaedics). In fact, next March 22, in the logical sequence of this bet in the speciality, Hospital da Luz Coimbra will hold the first edition of its Sports Medicine Journeys – Jornadas de Medicina Desportiva , destined to health professionals and all those interested in the area. Reportage “Towards a more positive sport experience” – “Para uma experiência desportiva mais positiva”
