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Medical officer aims to keep Games athletes healthy

For the chief medical officer of the Canada Winter Games, no detail is too small. From ordering supplies to packing venue-specific medical kits to scheduling the 200 staff during the two-week event to advanced training, Dr.
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Dr. Janet Ames is chief medical officer for the 2015 Canada Winter Games.

For the chief medical officer of the Canada Winter Games, no detail is too small.

From ordering supplies to packing venue-specific medical kits to scheduling the 200 staff during the two-week event to advanced training, Dr. Janet Ames, has been planning for both best and worst-case medical scenarios for more than two years.

"We've worried about the details of the coverage in the event of a serious injury but also everything in between too," said Ames.

Ames is responsible for the health of athletes and participants in the games, while St. John Ambulance volunteers look after the spectators. The Canada Winter Games estimates Prince George will see 2,400 athletes and 1,000 coaches and officials.

For Ames, that means coordinating the efforts of local family doctors, out-of-town sports medicine doctors, emergency doctors, nurses, chiropractors, massage therapists, physiotherapists and more.

Games medical staff will be stationed either at venues or at the polyclinic, which will be run from the top floor of the Civic Centre. It will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day on a first-come basis to athletes who need medical attention.

"The 'Poly Clinic' you can think of as an extra venue but it really is the mother ship. It runs the whole thing," said Ames, who is not new to the world of high-profile multi-sport events. She was a member of the host medical staff at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics and Canada's Chief Medical Officer at the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics.

Partnerships within the community were also a key consideration, Ames said, including B.C. Ambulance, ski patrol, and lifeguards.

Ames even had Games-specific prescription pads created, so she didn't have to overstock medical supplies and instead worked closely with a local pharmacy.

"There's all those little itty bitty details," she said.

But the parts are finally falling into place. Next week, she stops working at her private practice in orthopedic and sport medicine and goes full-bore Games. Not that the event hasn't already consumed her many waking moments.

Ames and her staff pay special attention to "higher risk" events, which include both Purden and Tabor Mountain venues, as well as short and long track and hockey.

Concussions are the biggest concern because they occur across all events. They're are also becoming increasingly common, perhaps because people are more educated about what constitutes a concussion, she said, and the threshold in recent years has lowered.

It's important to remember a person doesn't have to be knocked out to have a concussion, Ames said.

It's also the injury most likely to get push back from parents, athletes and coaches because the effect is less obvious than an injured limb, for example.

"Athletes are used to competing with some problems or injuries but it's our job to make sure they're not competing with something that could have long term effects."

Concussions are especially dangerous to a young brain, and Ames said it's important an athlete go through each recovery step symptom-free before returning to competition.

Unfortunately, the Canada Winter Games is in such a short time frame that it's unlikely a person with even a minor concussion could be cleared for play.

"We will be very careful not to overcall concussions however everybody has to also appreciate that if an athlete is diagnosed with concussion at the Games, in almost all situations would be withdrawn from play because there's not enough time."

A chief medical officer's responsibility doesn't end with injury.

"Everybody talks about injury but we have a whole part that's devoted to illness, both prevention but also tracking illnesses," said Ames, adding that's where the support of family doctors at the polyclinic could prove helpful.

For that she works closely with public health, but with the influx of people from across Canada, some of whom have been competing internationally, infectious diseases, like measles for example, could be a concern.

The Canada Winter Games athletes can also expect anti-doping measures. While Ames isn't a part of that process, it's yet another part that falls under the wide umbrella that is medical response.

"Usually it's the medalists and a random pick," she said. "Canada Games is kind of like your entry level getting athletes use to the whole concept."