KUWAIT: The Sports Medicine Center of the Public Authority for Sports provides comprehensive rehabilitation services to athletes recovering from physical and muscular injuries, helping them return to competition. The center is equipped with advanced technology and staffed by specialists offering the medical and rehabilitation services athletes need for a full recovery. To enroll in its comprehensive rehabilitation program, athletes must be registered with a sports federation under the Kuwait Olympic Committee, whether Kuwaiti or professional.
Sports Medicine Center Director Waleed Al-Enezi said the facility is among the oldest specialized centers in the Middle East, having opened in 1981. It initially focused on restoring injured athletes’ physical condition before gradually expanding its services and facilities into a comprehensive sports medical center. In 1992, it was transferred to the Public Authority for Youth and Sports, with its services continuing to expand to meet athletes’ rehabilitation needs.
Al-Enezi said the center’s work goes beyond injury rehabilitation to prevention, eye and dental examinations and physiological assessments covering athletes’ vital functions and overall health. He urged athletes, particularly young beginners, to undergo preventive medical examinations before taking up a sport, enabling clubs, coaches and parents to understand their physical condition and prevent future complications.
Acting Head of the Physical Therapy Department Salem Al-Mutairi said his department offers several services to support rehabilitation, including a fully equipped gym to improve physical fitness after injuries and surgery. It also provides electrotherapy to reduce pain caused by physical injuries or muscle weakness. Each athlete undergoes a comprehensive assessment before treatment to identify the underlying problem and develop an appropriate rehabilitation plan. Al-Mutairi said all cases treated at the center have received optimal care, enabling athletes to return to sport in their normal condition or at an even better level than before.
Physical therapist Jasem Mousa said the department works as a team to restore athletes’ previous activity levels, while he personally focuses on strengthening their mental resilience after injury. Many athletes experience fear and a loss of confidence following injuries, he said, adding that understanding their daily routines, diet and lifestyle helps provide more effective guidance and accelerate recovery. Mousa stressed the importance of following physical therapists’ instructions and adhering to the rehabilitation plan, noting that the center provides half of the treatment while the athlete bears responsibility for the other half.
The center includes a gym, electrotherapy and oxygen therapy rooms, advanced medical examination rooms, nutrition and radiology departments, a blood-testing laboratory and physiological, ophthalmology, dental and health-awareness sections. — KUNA
Original source: kw