AMSSM: increasingly valuable for primary care sports and exercise medicine physicians.

The American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) is a jewel in the global primary care sports and exercise medicine crown. In a very competitive market for their society dollars, US primary care physicians vote overwhelmingly for AMSSM, giving it a landslide victory. Membership is (almost) universal because of the benefits such as education and research support combined with networking opportunities. Conference attendance climbs year over year. Quality sponsors such as Donjoy (DJO) add substantial value (eg, travelling fellowship programme). Membership is available for less than the price of a kid’s phone (US$400). The organisation serves as a role model, a ‘success story’. And as health reform rolls though the USA, the support of AMSSM has never been more critical for sports physicians (ominous background music..., see ‘Chris Madden’ below).