Safely Playing Team Sports During COVID

Susannah M. Briskin, MD, FAAP, is a Pediatric Sports Medicine specialist in the Division of Sports Medicine. She is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. Dr. Briskin completed her undergraduate degree in Biology and her medical degree at The University of Rochester in Rochester, New York. She completed a residency in Pediatrics at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital where she served as a Chief Resident in her final year of training. Dr. Briskin completed a two-year fellowship in primary care sports medicine at Akron Children’s Hospital, Akron, Ohio, and joined the UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital in 2005.

Dr. Briskin is board certified in Pediatrics and has a Certificate of Added Qualifications in Sports Medicine. She maintains her credentialing through the American Board of Pediatrics and participates in the maintenance of certification programs in both fields.

Dr. Briskin is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and is an elected member of the Executive Committee for the AAP Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness. In this role, she advocates for athlete safety, physical fitness, and the dissemination of musculoskeletal education for Pediatricians. She is a member of the American Medical Society of Sports Medicine and serves on the Education and Research committees. She is also an elected member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society.

Dr. Briskin serves as the Fellowship Director of the University Hospitals Sports Medicine Institute Sports Medicine Fellowship, which began in 2008. The fellowship is the largest pediatric-based sports medicine fellowship in the country and the first one to obtain ACGME Osteopathic Recognition. In the role of Fellowship Director, Dr. Briskin coordinates and leads the educational program for four fellow trainees annually. The graduates of the UH program work all over the US and provide top-level Sports Medicine services to athletes nationwide.

Dr. Briskin is the Medical Co-Director for the Ohio Youth Soccer Association North and team physician for that organization’s Olympic Development Program. She also is the head team physician for Hathaway Brown School and Ursuline College. She also serves as the assistant team physician for Case Western Reserve University. Nationally, she has served as team physician for a number of elite athletic competitions, including the U.S. Senior Games, the U.S. Junior National Figure Skating Championship, and the U.S. Open Wrestling Tournament.

Dr. Briskin has published more than a dozen papers in peer-reviewed journals and textbook chapters. She is a peer reviewer for Pediatrics, Current Sports Medicine Reports, the American Journal of Sports Medicine, and the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine. She is a frequent presenter at medical conferences, including the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine. She also is a popular speaker at local sports health events for parents, coaches and young athletes.