Pure Sports Medicine was inspired by two very contrasting experiences. The first, whilst Andrew was playing rugby for New South Wales (NSW) against Samoa in 1994. Here, he suffered a severe head-clash which resulted in him being knocked unconscious and suffering a gaping facial wound.
While Andrew was unconscious, the NSW team Sports Physician made a phone call to a Plastic Surgeon who arrived at A&E at the same time as the ambulance and conducted the surgery immediately. Without the Sports Physician's network of contacts and quick action, Andrew would be even uglier than he is today! A few short weeks later, Andrew was playing again... this time with his specially designed 'Hannibal' mask to protect his extensive facial injuries.
In 2001, Andrew was studying for an MBA and playing rugby for the University of Oxford when he snapped his Achilles tendon. After being driven to A&E, he waited 6 hours to be seen by a registrar. Following diagnosis, the registrar sought the advice of the Orthopaedic Surgeon. "Put him in plaster and we will see him in 2 weeks" was the reply. By now, Andrew had already contacted a trusted Sports Physician in Australia and his recommendation was an operation to improve the chances of full recovery.
After telling the registrar he was a professional athlete and that he had been advised to have an operation, Andrew requested the opportunity to speak directly with the Orthopaedic Surgeon to discuss this option. The registrar subsequently went upstairs to relay the request and the answer came back as 'it's standard procedure for everyone. You have to be put in plaster.' Consequently a treatment process for a potential career ending and lifestyle altering injury was put into action without any physical examination by a specialist.
Dissatisfied with the publicly provided system, Andrew attempted to seek help from private sources. No one could definitively guide him as to whom he should see or where he should go. The concept of a specialist sports medicine centre was born then and there.
The vision then, as now, was to create a practice providing the best possible specialist treatment, accessible to all, where patients are given real individual focus.
Pure Sports Medicine is the result of that inspiration.