Conference with Sports Medicine Experts and Patriots Matthew Slater to Share New Insights, Research and Approaches

The first Annual Mass General Brigham Athletic Training Conference was held on Thursday, June 23, 2022, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, with keynote speaker longtime captain and all pro from the New England Patriots Matthew Slater. The event welcomed over 175 area athletic trainers, athletic directors, school nurses and coaches who play a role in the care of student athletes. The goal of the event was to share expertise and best management practices for the athlete both on and off the field and attendees were able to hear from leading sports medicine experts at the professional, collegiate, and high school level.  

The main message at the launch of the day from Matthew Slater was “Understand the importance you can have to an athlete. Often, they will come to you first and getting to understand them on a personal level will help build stronger relationships that will benefit them both clinically as well as overall wellness.”

Following Matthew Slater’s keynote speech, he joined a panel with participants James Whalen, ATC (Head Athletic Trainer), Daryl Nelson, ATC (Director of Organizational Development), of the New England Patriots and Patriots Team Physician from Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine Mark D. Price, MD, PhD. The panel discussion examined how the medical team supports one another, the communication needed for the care of the athlete, the trust that is developed between the different team members, and the importance knowing how and when to refer to others.

“As we celebrate our first year since launching a focused Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine program, this event represents the progress we have made and the promise of what we can accomplish,” said R. Scott Gassett, Vice President of Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine. “Throughout the day our experts and collaborators demonstrated the clinical excellence and innovation that makes Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine one of the true leaders nationally.” 

The overall theme for the day was the “Comprehensive Management of the Interscholastic Athlete”. The interprofessional conference covered a range of topics addressing the importance of the "team" approach in the interscholastic and academic environment. 

Among the topics covered were:

• Management of both the professional and interscholastic athlete and how these two approaches are related and can be implemented in your school
• Updates to statutes and regulations and what this means for your athletic program
• Interventions and opportunities for student athletes with disabilities
• Comprehensive concussion management
• The impact of COVID-19 on return to play
• Sports performance programming
• Common injuries and how to best manage these injuries on/off the field and in/out of the classroom setting

In addition to presentations and round table discussions, attendees learned about careers in Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine including clinical opportunities as well as its regional Athletic Trainer program serving over 30 communities and 50 schools in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. 

Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine provides clinical services to the Boston Bruins, New England Patriots and New England Revolution, as well as numerous Division I college programs including Boston College Athletics and high school athletic programs throughout Massachusetts and New Hampshire. To learn more about sports medicine programs and services from Mass General Brigham visit sportsmedicine.massgeneralbrigham.org. For information about careers for athletic trainers visit the careers page and select “Contact Talent Acquisition”.

Media Contact

Mass General Brigham:
Tim Sullivan, Media Relations
617-501-5985
tsullivan11@partners.org