Brandon Chiedo was raised a Jacksonville Jaguars fan, however he hopes to have a medical profession that advantages any skilled sports activities workforce; the NFL is in search of extra medical college students like Chiedo as they intention to diversify sports activities medication.

Chiedo is amongst a number of Morehouse School of Medicine college students who’re receiving on-field coaching by way of the NFL’s Diversity in Sports Medicine Pipeline Initiative. He spent September studying from the medical workforce for the Atlanta Falcons.

“It was an honor to work alongside the entire medical staff of the Atlanta Falcons for that four-week experience,” stated Chiedo. “It was cool to see how the physicians were able to balance their typical clinic schedules as well as their NFL responsibilities.”

He added that it was a dream come true to satisfy the Falcons soccer gamers and see how they ready to carry out for every sport.

Chiedo, together with the NFL’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Allen Sills, joined present host Rose Scott to debate the initiative on “Closer Look.” Sills says this program is required, as a result of, like the remainder of the medical workforce, sports activities medication is falling behind on the subject of illustration and variety.

“And that’s been a persistent problem,” stated Sills. “If you look at the percentage of Black medical students in the total medical school population in the U.S., that’s not risen in about 40 years. So, there’s tremendous work to be done.”

“Working toward diverse representation across all roles in our league continues to be a top priority, and this program helps us make a tangible impact to grow and bolster a pipeline of diverse sports medicine professionals,” stated NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. “We know that diversity makes us stronger at every level, and we look forward to welcoming the 2023 class to our player care teams at clubs across the league.”

According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, through the 2022-23 educational 12 months, “the number of Black or African American matriculants increased by nine percent,” and “matriculants who are Hispanic, Latino, or of Spanish origin increased by four percent,” whereas “American Indian or Alaska Native matriculants declined by nine percent.”