[July 24, 2015]

Kaiser Permanente Physicians to Provide Sideline Care as Special Olympics World Games Athletes Reach for the Gold

More than 650 Kaiser Permanente physicians will trade their exam rooms for a field, pool, track or course beginning Saturday, July 25, to provide sideline medical care at four of the seven hubs where the Special Olympics World Games Los Angeles (LA2015) will take place. This will include fields of play at USC, UCLA, the Los Angeles Convention Center, and the City of Long Beach. From the moment the delegations arrived in Los Angeles, Kaiser Permanente physicians have been giving their medical support to the athletes, and will continue to do so through the close of the World Games.

As a founding champion and the official health partner of the Games, Kaiser Permanente is honored to be a part of an event that encourages individuals to stay healthy, train and strive to achieve their very best. With 6,500 athletes from 165 countries competing, the Games will be the largest sports and humanitarian event anywhere in the world this year and the single biggest event in Los Angeles since the 1984 Olympic Games.

"We are honored to have the opportunity to work with an organization that shares our commitment to diversity, inclusion and total health for individuals and communities," said Edward M. Ellison, MD, executive medical director for the Southern California Permanente Medical Group, and member of the Special Olympics LA2015 Board of Directors. "I am especially proud of the hundreds of physicians who will provide these athletes with the world class medical care that is the hallmark of Kaiser Permanente."

Under the leadership of Aaron Rubin, MD, a sports medicine specialist at the Kaiser Permanente Fontana Medical Center, and the medical director of the Special Olympics World Games, Kaiser Permanente has been working closely with Special Olympics World Games officials, planning and preparing for almost two years.

Because Special Olympics athletes can require specialized care, Kaiser Permanente has conducted various specialty care conferences and symposiums covering care topics ranging from communicating with athletes with intellectual and developmental disabilities to assessing the unique health needs of Special Olympics athletes. In addition, physicians and other support staff carried out several medical and emergency response training drills, and created an innovative e-learning tool to help train volunteers. Following the Games, the e-learning tool entitled, "Sideline Care for the Special Olympics Athlete: Assessing the Unique Medical Needs of Special Olympics Athletes," will be donated to Special Olympics International.

"I hope that physicians andvolunteers throughout the world will be able to apply the best practices shared in this tool, not just in their volunteer work with Special Olympics, but also in every encounter they have with individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities," said Dr. Rubin.

Over the duration of the Games, temperatures in Los Angeles are expected to be in the mid to high 80's. In preparation, extra heat-safety measures have been put in place in select venues where outdoor sports are scheduled.

"We will especially be on the lookout for signs of dehydration, heat exhaustion and heat stroke," said Thad Woodward, MD, a sports medicine specialist at the Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills Medical Center, and the assistant medical director of the Special Olympics World Games. "Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities may be more prone to heat-related illnesses due to difficulty communicating how they feel and certain medications they may be taking."

For more information about Kaiser Permanente's involvement with the Special Olympics World Games 2015, please visit www.kp.org/SpecialOlympics and follow us on Facebook (News - Alert), Instagram and Twitter. For more information about the LA2015 Special Olympics World Games, please visit www.LA2015.org.

About the Special Olympics World Games Los Angeles 2015 (LA2015)

With 6,500 athletes and 2,000 coaches representing 165 countries, along with 30,000 volunteers and an anticipated 500,000 spectators, the 2015 Special Olympics World Games - being staged in Los Angeles July 25 - August 2, 2015 - will be the largest sports and humanitarian event anywhere in the world in 2015, and the single biggest event in Los Angeles since the 1984 Olympic Games. The 2015 Special Olympics World Games, with the unparalleled spirit, enthusiasm, teamwork, joy and displays of courage and skill that are hallmarks of all Special Olympics events, will feature 25 Olympic-style sports in venues throughout the Los Angeles region. The Opening Ceremony, to be held July 25, 2015 in the historic Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, site of the 1932 and 1984 Olympic Games, is expected to attract 50,000 spectators. On April 30, 2014, LA2015 and ESPN (News - Alert) announced a global programming deal that will see ESPN bring coverage of World Games to millions of fans around the world. Honorary Chairs of the Games are President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, with Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and California Governor Jerry Brown serving as Honorary Hosts. Current Founding Champions and sponsors include The Coca-Cola Company, Mattel, Deloitte (News - Alert), Toyota, Bank of America, Kaiser Permanente, OUE Skyspace Los Angeles, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), Davis Elen Advertising, Microsoft, Toys"R"Us, The Walt Disney (News - Alert) Company, Google, UPS, Herbalife Nutrition, Los Angeles Times, AMC Theaters, La Opinión, Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board, WWE, AEG, Annenberg Foundation, David Geffen, Kate Capshaw and Steven Spielberg, Panda Express, and Knights of Columbus. LA2015, the Games Organizing Committee, is a recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. For more information on the 2015 Special Olympics World Games, including volunteer and sponsorship opportunities, visit www.LA2015.org and on social media with #ReachUpLA on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

About Kaiser Permanente Southern California

Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America's leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high quality, affordable health care services to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve more than 4 million members in Southern California. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information follow us on twitter; @KPSCALNews or go to: www.kp.org/share.

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