The Musculoskeletal, Sport & Exercise Medicine (SEM) department at Leicester General Hospital has been established since 1993, and is one of the largest NHS sports medicine departments in the UK. The department includes a multi-disciplinary team of sports medicine doctors, an orthopaedic surgeon, specialist physiotherapists, nurse practitioners, and podiatrists.
The team manages a wide range of musculoskeletal conditions — not just sports injuries — including tendon disorders, joint problems, muscle pain, and long-term conditions. They also run exercise medicine clinics for patients with multiple medical conditions, as well as a specialist adolescent clinic at Leicester Royal Infirmary.
Services include both non-surgical and surgical treatment options, guided injections, and advanced therapies. The department supports patients with conditions that affect or can benefit from physical activity, including those with disabilities or during pregnancy. A national referral clinic for exertional lower limb pain is also provided.
An acute injury clinic offers rapid access for patients referred from emergency departments. The SEM department serves as a training base for doctors undertaking specialist training, and provide training to a number of GP’s with musculoskeletal or sports medicine as a specialty interest. This work conducts regular clinical audits and patient satisfaction surveys, consistently achieving satisfaction scores above 99%. The team are involved in the teaching and training of new specialist doctors in SEM, as well playing an active role in research with links to several UK universities.