 Essential Health Pediatrics and Family Medicine teams are hosting sports physicals nights for student athletes going into 7th or 12th grades this fall. These examinations are being offered at the Essential Health St. Joseph Baxter Clinic and are required for students who plan to play sports this fall in Breanard. The exams are being held with a doctor in either the pediatric or family practice departments. It gives us the opportunity to not only get them ready for their sports, but also we offer a full well child exam with the sports physical, so included in that is going to be mental health screening, reviewing their immunizations and getting them caught up on any immunizations they might need, doing a hearing and vision, and a full physical exam, making sure that they're healthy to play sports. The exams will take place again next Thursday, August 2nd from 4.30 until 7pm. A dietitian and sports trainer will also be available to answer questions regarding healthy eating or injuries that may happen while playing any sports. Sports physicals are a good time for us to pick up on any family history or personal history or exam findings that might put that athlete at risk for any sort of medical issue while they're participating in a sport. So we want to make sure that they're healthy enough to play that sport that they're interested in without any risk. These sports physicals are available by appointment and can be scheduled by calling 218-828-7100. If you enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Lakeland PBS.