Alfred Blue, M.D., former team physician for the Seattle Thunderbirds hockey which is based in Kent, Washington, passed away on Sunday, April 23, 2023, at the age of 93.
Surgeon, Lawyer, and Beloved Team Physician, ‘Doc’ Blue, Dies at 93
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Remembrances#obituary#alfredblue
“Very sad news,” said T-Birds coach Matt O’Dette in a statement. “Doc Blue was an incredible man and took great care of hockey players in Seattle for decades. We will miss him and his vast knowledge and wisdom around the rink. Deepest condolences to Doc Blue’s family and friends.”
Blue began his career as team physician with the Seattle Totems in 1963. He stayed with them until the team disbanded in 1975. He began working with the Thunderbirds who were originally called the Seattle Breakers in 1977.
The Thunderbirds moved to the ShoWare Center in Kent in 2009. The team named the medical room there after Blue on November 14, 2017, according to the Kent Reporter. He also was the recipient of the Western Hockey League Distinguished Service Award on September 30, 2006.
Blue wore many different hats during this medical career as a plastic surgeon, hand surgeon and orthopedic surgeon. He was also a lawyer, specializing in medical legal cases.
“His selfless dedication to Seattle hockey and the Seattle players’ physical and mental well-being was unparalleled,” the Thunderbirds said. “He was a great Thunderbird who set a standard for excellence that cannot be matched.”
Besides taking care of hockey players, he had a private practice in Seattle and was affiliated with Swedish Medical Center-Cherry Hill.
Blue earned his medical degree from University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine and then spent a year between 1955 and 1957 doing an internship at the U.S. Naval Hospital. He did his surgical residency back at the University of Arkansas between 1958 and 1959.
He also did two residencies in orthopedic surgery at the University of Washington between 1960 and 1963. He completed his residency in plastic surgery at Baylor College of Medicine between 1973 and 1976. He earned his undergraduate degree from Kent State University.
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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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