Rachel Gardenhire gains experience with Browns through NFL Diversity in Sports Medicine Pipeline Initiative 

As Rachel Gardenhire sat near the bench at a Miami University men’s basketball game and watched a player go down on the court with an injury, she sprang into action as an assistant athletic trainer. She ran onto the court to help assess the injury and provide care.

Yet, it also served as a switch for a desire to not just be an athletic trainer, but to be a physician. She wanted to continue studying sports medicine and attend medical school. She wanted to go into orthopedic surgery.

“I had a lot of exposure in school, and in that moment and in my undergrad experience, I had a lot of exposure to seeing orthopedic surgeries and just shadowing in that capacity,” she said. “So, I always thought it was cool. But there was always that little mind game of like, ‘But can I do it? Am I the one that can do it?’

“As I got more in the OR and saw more things, I really like the biomechanics thinking and very tangible outcomes of let’s improve somebody’s life in this way or improve their movement, thinking about how they use their body – whether it’s sports or whether it’s just everyday functioning,” Gardenhire continued. “So, I just like that the way of thinking and problem solving of orthopedics.”

Gardenhire is in her third year of medical school at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, completing a rotation with the Browns as a member of this year’s NFL Diversity in Sports Medicine Pipeline Initiative class.

She began her rotation with the Browns on Oct. 25 and spent four weeks with the Browns. During her time with the Browns, she spent time in the operating room at University Hospitals and in the clinic with Dr. James Voos, M.D., the head team physician and chair of the department of Orthopedic Surgery at University Hospitals Cleveland.

“It was a pleasure to host Rachel for the month,” Voos said. “I am grateful to the Browns and University Hospitals for providing a comprehensive, all-access experience for her.”

She’s also experienced the primary care side with Dr. Sean Cupp, M.D., and she’s been at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus helping assess injuries before and after practice, as well as assisting in rehabilitation with the Browns athletic training staff.

“It’s been cool to see all the different avenues within medicine that work together under the sports medicine umbrella, and how much collaboration there is even across specialties within the practice,” Gardenhire said.

The NFL Diversity in Sports Medicine Pipeline Initiative – which is in its third year – was first developed to encourage medical students from diverse backgrounds to consider sports medicine careers, and over time, help to diversify NFL club medical staffs.