Why and how to create a medical staff in football

With this article this is an opportunity, to give the floor to an expert. Glenn Loric Kiné-ominous of this sport officia in Nantes and intervenes with the club and the FFF. He explains today why and how to create a medical staff in football. What are the interests to invest in medical treatment? How to compose a medical staff based on the level of your team? How to organize relationships between technical staff and therapists?

The accumulation of injuries is a growing and recurring problem in football teams. The causes are multiple: proof of games, increase in the intensity of efforts, lifestyle, land area … many clubs are therefore amputated on a significant part of their workforce. In order to reduce these absences, it has become necessary to benefit from the services of health professionals specialized in sports pathologies. However, it is not always easy for the “players” arresting the medical world. Here is a guide to answer the questions of many coaches

1. What are the interests to have a medical staff

The recruitment of a medical staff and the investment in certain care may seem a luxury for many club presidents, preferring to reward the budget to the players. However, you should know that a minimum of medical investments can be quickly “profitable”.

The first interest is obviously sporty. A serious medical follow-up, adequate training, a remediation in consultation with physiotherapists allow you to have a more complete workforce and therefore better competitiveness. The examples of the club that cannot go up to the highest level due to the injured managers are numerous. And the clubs are also relegated! An example of “profitable” investment is to finance an ischinetic test for a player with repeated muscle injuries. This test allows you to objectify the muscle imbalances that cause tears of repetition and to perform adequate physical preparation. This test costs about € 50, a moderate sum if it helps to preserve an accident player.

The second interest is financial. This mainly concerns professional and semi-professional clubs. An injured employee player is a clear financial “loss” for a club. There is therefore a craziest interest in investments in the doctor: the number of wounded players decreases and therefore the club does not have to pay the players to “do nothing”. A few years ago, a study conducted in an average club of Ligue 1 estimated that for € 1 invested in the doctor, the club “saved” 10 € in wages of players potentially on work stops. A more attractive investment of the scholarship!

The last interest is at the level of The attraction of the team. The presence of a medical staff is a significant topic to attract a player during the transfer window. Players have a great interest in not being injured for the rest of their career and know it well.

2. How to compose a medical staff based on the level of the team

Many clubs are going to the services of a medical staff thinking that this requires a significant budget. This idea is partly false: it is not because we request the services of healthcare professionals who must be paid by the club. Depending on the club’s financial means, different types of partnership can be concluded. Here is a description of the current collaborations based on the team level.

Amateur team

In general, the club does not have the financial means to invest in the doctor. However, the coach can contact the local physiotherapy and osteopathy companies in order to benefit from advice and be able to take care of his players. The professional will find interest in having new patients and managing to follow a sports team without the associated constraints (movement, availability, etc.). And in particular the care will be reimbursed by social security, subject to a prescription.

The coach must also be connected to a sports doctor. This will be able to benefit from his diagnoses and relationships with other health professionals (surgeon, radio, etc.) in order to speed up the various medical events. We must also agree with these professionals to be able to communicate quickly and clearly the evolution of the injuries and the return dates on the field.

This is the ideal solution for clubs with small budgets, but also has its limits: less involved and less available therapists, assistance limits by social security, not reimbaciting with certain treatments.

Semi-professional team

When a club pays a player, it is essential that it is as often as possible in a condition of playing. It is therefore profitable to take part-time a masseur-fisyotherapist and/or an osteopath to treat players and prevent injuries. In general, this is done on 2-3 sessions per week. The therapist will also intervene on correspondences to intervene on “small emergency medicine” (reggispi, light bleeding, etc.). During the games, the role of physiotherapy is not just about running with the “magic bomb”. It will make the first care during distortions or muscle injuries that can earn up to ten days in the recovery of an injury.

It is also important to have a reference doctor to coordinate care, make serious medical examinations pre -station, carrying out blood and cardio assessments … The budget for this type of staff is very variable based on the club’s requests, but are generally several thousand euros per season. It will also be necessary to plan a budget for the cocche, the pharmacy kit, the additional tests (ischinetic tests, effort test, etc.).

Professional team

In general, a professional team will use 2 full -time masseurs masseurs (or half -time), a sports doctor (half -time) and sometimes an osteopath. The club will also occasionally intervene a podiatrist, a dietician, a dentist (very important !!!) and more rarely a sports psychologist.

3. What is the doctor’s place in a staff

The place of the medical staff is not only in the infirmary to wait for injured players. He must accompany the players to the return to the competition, but also take care of the valid players. In the same way, there was a time when the coaches never set foot in the treatment room. The physiotherapists were sometimes perceived as the “enemies” of the coaches and had to negotiate the return times of the wounded players. The roles were divided and everyone remained in their place. Fortunately, the mentality are evolving! Many studies show that close collaboration between technicians and medical staff helps to reduce the percentage of injured players.

The best way to treat a player is to do it badly.

The advice and skills of the medical staff must allow the coach to adapt his training and identify the work requested by his players. One of the best example to follow is the organization adopted in Losc (Ligue 1): training per week is led by physiotherapists, in collaboration with physical preparers. They offer individualized proprioception, stretching, sheath exercises … This allows you to have the lowest lesion in Ligue 1 and to avoid the series of lesions of the same type (in particular adductors) that can be observed in some clubs. This organization also allows the coach to take a step back and have an overview of his group “leaving the dumbbells”.

The real difficulty in adopting this system is the mentality of “French” football coaches. They delegate their assistants too little. They organize the training, participate in the exercises, direct the entire staff. The organization of “The Englishwoman” with a “General Sports Manager” seems more appropriate for modern football. The coach therefore works as HRD coordinating and supervising the different staff members, maintaining a necessary drop in his group of players.

Football is a conservative environment and developments are slow to accepted beings. This sport was late for rugby or handball for example. The new generations of coaches must continue to train alone observing what is done elsewhere. The key to success for future coaches is to have the intelligence and humility to integrate the advice of the different staff members to make the most of his group of players.