Trustee Candidate: Medicine
Steven D. Stovitz, M.D., M.S., FACSM
Sports Medicine Team Physician
and Associate Professor
University of Minnesota
Department of Family Medicine
and Community Health
Minneapolis, MN
1. Please list your service to ACSM.
My career has been devoted to bridging sports medicine research with clinical care and public health, and I would be honored to serve as a trustee of the American College of Sports Medicine. I am a team physician and associate director of the primary care sports medicine fellowship at the University of Minnesota, where I also serve as research director.
Since becoming a member of ACSM in 1996, I have proudly served the College in numerous ways. I am currently in my 6th year as a member of ACSM’s Research Review Committee. As one of only a few clinicians on this committee of 14, I have sought to enhance the clinical aspects of research supported by ACSM. I served as ACSM's representative at the National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality Summit on Childhood Obesity in 2006, and on the CDC-AMA Expert Committee on the Assessment and Prevention of Childhood Obesity and Adolescent Overweight and Obesity in 2005-2007. I am a member of ACSM’s Media Referral Network, their Northland Chapter and their "Exercise is Medicine®" Committee. Recently, I was invited to be one of ACSM’s three representatives on the review committee for a joint clinical grant with the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine. I have published and served as a reviewer for ACSM publications and been a presenter, case discussant and moderator at ACSM’s annual meetings.
2. What is ACSM’s greatest strength and how would you make that aspect of the organization even stronger?
ACSM’s greatest strength is in advancing high quality sports medicine research for the purpose of bettering individual and public health. The success of ACSM is seen perhaps most prominently in its international campaign to expose the hazards of a sedentary lifestyle and promote the idea that “Exercise is Medicine®” (EIM). I have a master’s degree in clinical research and have collaborated with fellow ACSM members in the fields of epidemiology and kinesiology to publish topics related to both musculoskeletal sports medicine and the field of “Exercise is Medicine®".
My first research study was a randomized controlled trial testing the effectiveness of providing pedometers to inactive patients in a primary care clinic. Since then I have presented on the topic of EIM both locally and internationally (in Costa Rica), currently serve on ACSM’s Education Committee for EIM, and co-authored a book chapter along with EIM Vice President (A. Hutber) and Program Officer (E. Burton) that will appear in the upcoming International Council of Sport Science and Physical Education.
ACSM’s mission to promote and integrate scientific research, education and practical applications of sports medicine aligns with my career and academic goals. If elected to the board of trustees, I will use my experience in clinical research, my collaborations with sports medicine researchers and my energy to enhance ACSM’s mission in order to improve national and international health.
3. ACSM works closely with many other organizations, including associations, companies, philanthropies, and governmental agencies. Indicate those organizations/companies/agencies for which you play an advisory, consulting, or leadership role.
None