JPS Health Network, Fort Worth ISD To Offer Free Sports Physical Exams for the New School Year

Physicians from JPS Health Network are offering free sports physicals for Fort Worth ISD student athletes on Saturday, May 21.

Fifty JPS physicians, including seven Sports Medicine Program fellows, Sports Medicine Program faculty members, and physicians in the Family Medicine Residency Program, will perform the exams. A comprehensive sports physical exam is required for Fort Worth ISD students to participate in athletics in the new school year. The free event is a convenient opportunity for students to get a checkup.

Also volunteering their time are more than 30 others, including JPS nurses, EMTs, and students from Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine, who will take vital signs. Other JPS team members have been enlisted to direct the students to various stations.

“We want to be involved in our community. We want kids to be able to participate in sports because it provides so many positives for our youth today,” said Sports Medicine Fellowship Program Director Michele Kirk, MD.

The mass physicals event has not taken place since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Kirk noted that at past events JPS physicians have identified serious health problems in some teens while checking students’ readiness for sports. Athletes are referred to the appropriate physician providers for further evaluation and treatment in these situations.

JPS Sports Medicine physicians serve as team physicians for many high schools in Fort Worth ISD and Arlington ISD as well as being the team physicians for Texas Christian University, Texas Wesleyan University, and Southwest Assemblies of God University. They specialize in preventing, diagnosing, and treating injuries related to athletics and physical activities. To find out more about the JPS Sports Medicine program, visit jpshealthnet.org/get-care/services/orthopaedics.

Physical examination and medical history forms must be completed and signed by a parent or legal guardian by Wednesday, May 18. All FWISD athletes wanting to participate must go through their school and athletic trainer. Parents will not be allowed to bring their children in for the physicals themselves.