If you are involved in youth sports, you’re very familiar with the term sports physical, also known as a pre-participation physical examination (PPE). Depending on what your school district requires, this is either an annual or bi-annual prerequisite for participating in sports.
Today we’re going to explain the differences between a sports physical and an annual physical. We’re also going to share some of the specialized services we offer to help make healthy habits more accessible for you!
Annual Physical vs. Sports Physical
First, we want to address the difference between an annual physical and a sports physical. At first glance, it would seem like one should be enough, right? Not quite! Your annual physical:
- Focuses on a whole-person evaluation of your child’s wellbeing
- Typically includes assessments to measure cognitive, social and emotional development
- Helps build trust between provider and patient
- Gives parents and child space to discuss challenging topics about health
- Incorporates immunizations and bloodwork/labs/screenings as needed
- Addresses preventative health topics
Sports physicals are much more specific in purpose. As you would imagine, a sports physical is focused on assessing the components of your child’s health that are impacted by sports. This will include things like:
- Pulse and blood pressure check
- Discussion about medical history, especially regarding past injuries
- Eye exam
- Flexibility and fitness assessments
At Your Family Medical, we offer both annual physicals as well as sports physicals as part of our family medicine Justin TX clinic specialty (locations also in Flower Mound, Bedford, Benbrook and Boyd). We would be happy to cheer on your son or daughter in their favorite sport and beyond with either (or both) wellness services.
Ways Your Family Medical Can Help
We realize that everyone is busy, especially once the school year gets up and running. We’re sure the last thing you have time for is to schedule a sports physical. That’s why we’ve put together a list of several options we offer to help keep your annual sports physical a low-stress item on your to-do list.
- If You Are a Superintendent or Principal: We have the resources to coordinate an on-site sports physical day for your school(s). This would allow you to offer your students an opportunity to come to one convenient location in your district on a specific day and our team of physicians will perform sports physicals. We could coordinate this based upon your district’s availability – your school’s registration day, a separate day during summer break, or any time that would best suit your athletic calendar.
- If You Are a Homeschool Co-Op: Many homeschool groups choose to participate in a team sport together while others encourage their members to independently participate in the sport of their choosing. Either way, our team would be happy to help you with your annual sports physical needs. Contact our office to discuss options so that we can determine how to best serve your Co-Op’s specific needs.
- If You Are a Coach or Athletic Director: We can work with you to organize a team sports physical event on-site at your school on a practice day or during your sport’s pre-season training.
- If You Are an Athlete or Parent of an Athlete: When you call to schedule your athlete’s annual sports physical, be sure to specify that it is a “sports physical.” Also, typically your school will need a physician’s signature on a physical exam athletic permit form. We recommend you call your athlete’s school and have them email the form to our office prior to their appointment. If you are a new patient, your athlete can also download and fill out the new patient paperwork prior to his or her appointment and bring it in with them at the time of the appointment.
Contact us today to learn more about this convenient, customizable option! Our goal is to offer accessible options for some of the very best family medicine Justin TX has to offer (locations also in Flower Mound, Bedford, Benbrook and Boyd).
Health Family Care Justin TX
Whatever your medical needs are – from sports physicals to geriatric medicine and everything in between – we want to serve you. Our medical professionals offer consistent, top-tier quality care that you can trust, all with the convenience of commuting to a single office for both you and your whole family. Contact us today to schedule your first appointment at Justin or one of our other four convenient Texas locations!
