The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) and the Pittsburgh Steelers have announced that they are extending their partnership for 15 years. In addition, the UPMC Sports Complex will be renamed the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex as an honor to Ambassador Dan Rooney, chairman of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
UPMC, Steelers Extend Partnership; Facility Renamed
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As indicated in the news release, “The new name reflects UPMC and UPMC Sports Medicine’s commitment to our community as well as our mission to provide a wide range of world-class care for professional and amateur athletes as well as active individuals. UPMC Health Plan will become the exclusive health insurance provider of the team and the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex will continue to provide the day-to-day care of Steelers players. In addition to the Steelers, UPMC Sports Medicine continues to provide care for many collegiate and high school athletic programs.”
“The sports medicine program was first established by Freddie Fu, M.D., chairman of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), in 1986 in a modest space located in the Iroquois Building. It was relocated in 1988 to a building at Baum Boulevard and Craig Street. As the sports medicine program continued to expand, Dr. Fu envisioned the design and construction of a state-of-the-art sports medicine complex and the current UPMC Sports Performance Complex opened in October 2000 on the South Side. A second location, the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex, opened in August 2015 in Cranberry. Dr. Volker Musahl serves as Medical Director for the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, and Dr. Vonda Wright serves as Medical Director for the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex.”
“UPMC Sports Medicine is grateful for this opportunity to honor Ambassador Dan Rooney and for our continued association with the Rooney family and is extremely proud of the continued partnership between the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, UPMC, and the Pittsburgh Steelers.”
Dr. Fu told OTW, “This is a timely recognition for a great citizen, an ambassador, and a sports icon. It is our honor to name this facility after Dan Rooney. The vision is to keep improving care for the players, to be a leader in education and research, and to treat our patients using solid scientific principles.”
“Our concussion center continues to lead the way in tackling a difficult issue through a multidisciplinary approach. We are doing all the right things in order to provide the best quality of care for our patients.”
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This is a fascinating development. In my practice we've seen similar outcomes with the revised protocol. The key differentiator seems to be patient selection criteria. Has anyone else noticed the correlation with BMI thresholds?
Great point. I'd push back slightly on the conclusion, the sample size in the cited study is too small to draw population-level inferences. That said, the directional signal is compelling and worth a larger RCT.
We implemented a similar approach last year. Early results are promising but we're still gathering 12-month follow-up data. Happy to share our protocol if anyone is interested.
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