“Our overall goal at MSU Sports Medicine is to be a single location for patients and athletes alike to come when they're having pain, ailments, or even just looking for advice on how to get active and stay active,” says Nate Fitton, a team physician at the MSU Health Care Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center. “Our ultimate goal for all patients is to lead a fulfilling, active life. We see a wide variety of acute injuries, chronic injuries, as well as people just looking to get active and talk about nutrition, weightlifting regimens, and things like that. And so our mission is to provide that service to the community and be a nationally recognized location for patients to come and have access to world renowned providers. We really strive to be a destination for sports medicine and preventative care.”

“We treat everyone,” says Jill Moschelli, a team physician at the MSU Health Care Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center. “All ages and backgrounds are welcome. You do not need to be an elite athlete to come to the Sports Medicine office. That's a question we always get. Do I need to be an athlete to come and see you? The answer is no. We will see everyone and treat everyone similarly. We just want to keep people active and doing what they love.”

I didn't really realize that proactive mission either. That's really cool that you'd rather have people not have to see you, frankly.

“We get that a lot, where patients come in and they're worried that we're going to tell them to stop running or walking,” continues Fitton. “That's not our goal at all. Our goal is to be creative but keep you moving. Maybe running isn't the best thing for you but riding a bike or doing the elliptical absolutely can be. It's not that we would totally eliminate things, it's really about being creative and keeping you going. That's really our ultimate goal. I tell patients regularly, yes, if you hurt because you run too much and you've got poor form, well, continuing to do that is not what we want for you. But at the same time, we want to keep you active. We look for ways to help you stay active. Sure, if you just stopped running for four weeks, it would get better, but you're going to have other issues from not running. We want to find ways to keep you going, keep you moving.”

Are there new treatments on the horizon that have you excited about treating patients better?

“We are all really involved in sports medicine and are at the cutting edge of what's happening in the field of sports medicine,” Moschelli continues. “Many of us are presenting at national conferences and are really involved on a national level with different societies and committees, and so we are really trying to bring that into our office. We really are offering availability to all of the cutting-edge opportunities or treatments.”

“This is where we separate ourselves in that we have the power of a research university behind us,” says Fitton. “We regularly collaborate with PhD candidates and researchers on campus who are looking to advance the delivery of healthcare. That's another thing patients can look forward to when they come see us is that we have ongoing research projects. We're looking at things like osteopathic manipulative medicine and recovery from concussions to see if we can enhance or speed up the recovery by adding that treatment modality. Over in the Department of Kinesiology, they're doing a tremendous amount of ongoing research that is at the leading edge of what next-level care is going to look like. With us being involved in that, we can also provide that to our patients. I think that's really exciting.”

Increasingly, more women are getting involved in sports medicine.

“Historically, sports medicine has maybe not been as inclusive,” Moschelli says. “But I am very honored to be a part of the group at MSU Sports Medicine. Dr. Sheeba Joseph and I are two female providers there, and we're both team physicians for MSU athletes. There are a lot of female athletes at MSU, and they have their own set of challenges that you need to think about when treating them.”

What would be some tips for the weekend warriors, or even regular exercisers, to not have to come and see you guys?

“It's about moderation and approach,” says Fitton. “When you decide you’re going to start running or working out, we are in full support of that. Because the healthier you are, the less you're going to need us. Our goal is for healthy, active people.

“We regularly encourage diversity in what you do. Don't run seven days a week. Run three days a week; cycle a couple days a week; try to get some swimming in or incorporate some strength training. We know that through activity and interactions that the body can start to have some overuse injuries. The best way to avoid those is through diversity of your activities. That diversity promotes full body wellness and health and strength.”

“And find something you like,” Moschelli says. “Find something you enjoy doing because that's going to hopefully lead to further success in being active if you find something you enjoy. It’s good to get your joints moving in a variety of directions. We can help you be creative with your exercise and nutrition plan.”

“The team approach to your delivery of care is how we're going to interact,” says Fitton. “We’re not only going to evaluate and manage and make recommendations. If we need to draw upon skills from other providers within our office offer, we're going to do so and vice versa. Additionally, we'll take it one step further. If you need to see physical therapy or another specialist, we're going to help coordinate that. And we're going to coordinate your care with your physical therapist and make sure that everyone's on the same page, and we collaborate and work together to getting you back. Rarely do we get someone in the door and say, ‘You know what? We've got nothing for you.’ That's a failure on our end. We want to always have an option to help you get better. If it's me, if it's my partners, or someone else within MSU Health Care, we're going to do that.”

The MSU Health Care Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center is in the Eyde Building on South Hagadorn Road. You can call (517) 884-6100 or go to healthcare.msu.edu.

“We have availability to see people now,” says Moschelli. “If you need to be seen for any particular injury, pain, or question about your plan, we have openings now.