Welcome to Gilmour Academy Sports Medicine
The Gilmour Academy Lancer Sports Medicine Department is responsible for the management of the student-athletes’ health, well-being and safety. This includes the prevention, recognition and rehabilitation of athletic injuries and, if necessary, the referral of the student-athletes to appropriate specialized providers.
The Lancer Sports Medicine Department is a visionary among its peers, employing personnel, techniques and facilities unrivaled in the area. A full-time Certified Athletic Trainer (ATC) is available weekdays from late mornings until the end of practices and games, in addition to a part-time ATC who is available during the afternoon and evening hours. Both are also available for weekend hours, ensuring the elimination of gaps in any ongoing treatment for the student-athletes.
Sports Medicine at Gilmour goes far beyond event coverage by assuring the total care of its student-athletes. The department excels in the area of rehabilitation, offering on-campus appointments during the school day, which allows for both comfort and convenience. Rehab and other daily care are made possible by outstanding facilities and equipment. Some of the equipment and technology includes taping tables, treatment tables, an electrical stimulation and ultrasound unit, a custom cold pack freezer, a hydrocollator and other rehab equipment. One of the most welcomed additions is the Game Ready - a therapy system that integrates cold and compression therapies. Additionally, the Sports Medicine Department is continually evaluating its equipment and techniques to ensure student-athletes are receiving the best possible care utilizing the best-available technology.
The goal of the department is to continue to implement new ideas and techniques in order to offer the best medical attention to the student-athletes and employees. The department also takes its mission one step further by offering students the opportunity to take a sports medicine class as an elective within the Gilmour Academy academic curriculum. The class allows students to be educated on the injury and rehab process, while also earning CPR and first aid certification, in addition to receiving practical application during athletic events. The course is taught by head athletic trainer Kara Dolling, MS, ATC, CSCS, PES, ITAT, who has a wealth of experience within the field of sports medicine, which includes teaching undergraduate anatomy and physiology, as well as athletic training courses within a college curriculum.
Concussion Education
The recognition and treatment of head injuries has become a controversial and important topic to student-athletes and families throughout the country, especially in recent years. As a result, Gilmour Academy is committed to educating its student-athletes and families, while giving them the best possible care through our Sports Medicine Department. The head athletic trainer administers baseline testing for all students in the Middle School and all student-athletes in the Upper School. Use of the ImPACT program assesses the students' abilities prior to any head injury they may suffer during the academic year. This allows the Sports Medicine Department to then create a specialized return-to-school and return-to-play program for each student should they undergo a head injury. Our head athletic trainer is certified in assessing the tests and coordinating all care between the students and their coaches, academic counselors and teachers throughout the recovery phase. There is no "one-size-fits-all" approach to concussion management. The Sports Medicine Department takes into account each student's academic abilities, as well as those assessed by the ImPACT test, in order to create specific modifications for each student, moving both aspects in tandem to the improvement of symptoms during recovery.
Strength & Conditioning
Another important component of Gilmour Academy Lancer Sports Medicine is the Strength and Conditioning Program. The overall mission of this program is to build strength and flexibility in order to aid in injury prevention and the healthy growth of the student-athlete through fundamental movement and extreme attention to technique and form. The program provides customized workouts based on an individual student-athlete’s abilities, strengths and weaknesses. By using a range of simplistic to complex movements through a variety of training methods, student-athletes get a fresh approach for developing their physical performance.
A National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) oversees the program and its facilities. The CSCS is available weekdays during the school year and throughout the summer months and is available to create custom workouts not only for the student-athletes, but for any employee of Gilmour Academy. Specific hours are posted through the Twitter account - @GAstrength - as well as through signage located on the outside of the weight room entrance. For any questions or requests, please contact Strength and Conditioning Coordinator Dan Coughlin at coughlind@gilmour.org or Director of Sports Medicine and Athletic Performance Kara Dolling at dollingk@gilmour.org.
Workouts are conducted in the Gilmour Academy weight room located in the Ice Arena, as well as throughout the outdoors of the 144-acre campus. Some of the more traditional equipment that can be incorporated into the workouts includes treadmills, ellipticals, endurance bikes, power racks, platforms, plyometric boxes, hammer strength equipment, medicine, BOSU and stability balls, balance discs, rubber bands, dumbbells and Universal weight machines. Some of the unorthodox training equipment includes battle ropes, tires, sledge hammers, heavy bags and a muay tai bag.
Because the program is tailored to specific individuals, athletes from all sports have the best possible opportunity to increase their performance as it applies to their specific sport.
Nutrition
In addition to the strength and conditioning aspects of the overall Gilmour Academy Lancer Sports Medicine program, nutrition is another valuable element. The Gilmour staff firmly believes student-athletes must properly fuel their bodies in order to reap the full benefits offered by the sports medicine program. As a result, they have dedicated time and training to be able to recommend healthy plans for the students, while educating them on the proper way to eat, which not only includes information on what foods are best, but also how much and how often a student-athlete should consume certain foods and liquids. The school is also fully committed to fueling our student-athletes with proper nutrition, providing lunch weekdays to all students as part of the tuition. Lunch includes hot items, soup and salad bar with fresh fruit, infused water and more. The weight room also provides healthy snacks for the student-athletes.
All staff members working within the Sports Medicine Department have access to emergency information on all students so that the proper assessment of past history, current conditions, and allergy information can be used to determine the best care for each student.