Expanding Opportunities

BucSports opens new clinic on ETSU’s campus

BucSports and Dr. Ralph Mills are familiar names to many medical students and residents who have passed through Quillen College of Medicine and to many East Tennessee State University athletes.

For years, the clinic operated out of ETSU’s Ballad Health Athletic Center (the Mini-Dome), offering sports medicine services to athletes and even the general public. Residents rotated with the attending physicians, and medical students and residents alike enjoyed lectures from Mills on a variety of topics relevant to sports medicine.

In 2022, ETSU Health invested in expanded sports medicine services and held a grand opening for a new location on campus, BucSports Medicine, at 1043 Jack Vest Drive. The new facility boasts improved parking, modern clinic rooms, state-of-the-art equipment, a leading-edge concussion management program, and onsite physical therapists through a partnership with ETSU’s Physical Therapy program.

Quillen College of Medicine residents from Family Medicine, Pediatrics, and Internal Medicine now enjoy a richer rotation experience thanks to these investments, according to sports medicine physicians Dr. Mills and Dr. Jay Johnston, who joined ETSU Health just before the clinic opening.

Interested residents have the opportunity to participate in a one- to four-week rotation at the clinic and have frequent opportunities to shadow Mills and Johnston as they provide sideline coverage at large sporting events, where they learn how to evaluate injuries, work with emergency medical services, and work with high school and college trainers. Thanks to the investment in high-end ultrasound and X-ray equipment at the new location, those experiences are richer than ever, Mills said.

“I think it’s massive for them, because we’ve got full X-ray there,” Mills said. “We’ve got all the extra amenities. At that clinic, they’re able to go with us, see the patient, walk right back to the X-ray, see the X-ray or see the ultrasound that we do – it’s the highest of the high end.”

Johnston said that the increased exposure is making the rotation more competitive, because it is so beneficial to residents’ résumés – especially for those who might have a future interest in sports medicine.

“The goal within the next year is to create a sports medicine track for interested residents,” Johnston said. “We would identify any who may want to become a sports medicine doctor and get them on track to be really competitive for a fellowship.”

He added that the college has a goal to bring a sports medicine fellowship in the future and already has the assets to form a competitive program thanks to partnerships with ETSU Athletics, local sports teams, and ETSU’s other strong health science programs, including Nutrition, Occupational Therapy, and Physical Therapy.