Connecting Research to Practice

Mick Hughes, the ACL and the Internet

The gap between research and practice can often feel insurmountable to the busy clinician. Making sense of seemingly contradictory evidence takes up scarce time and the perfect research conditions often don’t match the messy lives of busy patients.

Occasionally the rare communicator emerges who can synthesise the evidence and with their clinical expertise create a clear map for others to follow. Melbourne physiotherapist Mick Hughes is one such person.

Mick likes to think of himself as a simple guy. A rural upbringing creates a practicality to all that he does. But Mick is also pretty good at communicating in a style that resonates and he has recently discovered that the Internet allows him to share his knowledge with a much broader audience.

Mick works in Sports Physiotherapy and he has a particular interest in knees and the ACL. He reads all the research he can find, works out how it fits together and then shares it through blogs on his website at www.mickhughes.physio and via Social Media.

Unsurprisingly Mick has developed a bit of a global reputation and his information is eagerly received by physiotherapists, coaches, strength and conditioning coaches, exercise physiologists, sports doctors, orthopaedic surgeons and athletes.

Responding to demand, Mick created an evening lecture on all-things ACL. He told a few people and the next thing he knew it was full. So he ran a second lecture, and then a third. Many others who could not attend wanted access to the information so Mick recorded a fourth lecture on his computer and has now made it available at his website.

An overview is available below. Like Mick it is not a slick production, but it is honest, reliable and incredibly useful.

The lecture provides the latest evidence and puts it into a practical pathway for injury prevention, rehabilitation and return to sport. Every person who works with athletes or treats knee injuries needs to see this lecture to bridge their gap between the research and their practice.

Thanks to Mick we have a clear path ahead for understanding the ACL. To see the video visit Mick's website at www.mickhughes.physio and click on the blue ACL Lecture button.