NORMAL — Illinois State University students no longer have to leave campus to get rehabilitation treatment for orthopedic injuries.

The Sports Medicine and RehabilitationTherapy (SMART) Clinic recently opened in McCormick Hall on the ISU campus to treat students, both athletes and non-athletes, who need physical therapy services to recover from sprains, fractures, post-surgical injuries and other injuries.

“We expect to see both acute and chronic types of injuries, as a result of participation in intermurals, club sports and/or activities related to physical activity,” said SMART Clinic Director Justin Stanek. “Specifically, we anticipate seeing ligament sprains, muscle strains as well as tendonitis muscle stiffness/soreness, just to name a few.”
SMART Clinic also treats injuries not related to sports or physical activity.
“Students, through the stresses of college, could be sitting at a desk for a prolonged period of time, maybe with bad posture,” said Stanek. “They could have some lower back pain or issues with their shoulder and neck, just from stress.”
Before SMART Clinic opened on campus, students were referred to area clinics for rehabilitation treatment for orthopedic injuries, after receiving acute care from Student Health Services.
“Prior to the SMART Clinic, many students would be seen by the providers at Student Health Services and have the opportunity to be referred to area clinics,” said Stanek. “There was not anywhere on campus that would provide rehabilitation services for non-athletes. Therefore, students without transportation often had no place to go.”
SMART Clinic will only treat students referred by Student Health Services. Students pay $10 per visit.
Students in the Athletic Training Education Program use the second floor of McCormick Hall in what used be a basketball gym, where the SMART Clinic is located, from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on weekdays. The SMART Clinic uses that space from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays. Students can receive treatment at the clinic on weekends by appointment. The clinic may add hours as demand increases.
“Only a few items of start-up equipment was needed to be purchased for the SMART Clinic,” said Stanek. “Most of the equipment that we use for the athletic training education program is also used by the clinic. When we were planning for the move to the new building (renovated McCormick Hall), we strategically bought additional equipment with the intent of the equipment being used both for teaching and the clinic.”
SMART Clinic is staffed by two full-time certified athletic trainers, plus several undergraduate athletic training student assistants. The clinic is equipped to perform hydrotherapy, ultrasound and various manual therapies, including stretching, balance exercises and weights. Stanek expects the clinic to treat 10 to 12 students per day.
The clinic was built in conjunction with the renovation of McCormick Hall and construction of the adjoining Student Fitness Center.
ISU is one of the few universities in the country to provide non-athletes with rehabilitation treatment for orthopedic injuries.
“Our clinic is unique in that very few colleges/universities offer a sports medicine clinic for non-athletes,” said Stanek. “We were able to find information on about five other schools that had something similar, but currently it is fairly rare to offer such a service.”