FSEM Launches New Minimum Standards to Strengthen Athlete Healthcare Across the UK
The Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine UK (FSEM) has officially launched three new Team Care minimum standards documents, in: Qualifications and Certification of Doctors; Athlete Immediate Care and Indemnity. These documents are designed to enhance the quality, safety, and consistency of medical care provided to athletes across the United Kingdom.
Led by Dr Jim Kerss, Chair of the FSEM Team Care Committee, the new standards reflect an extensive, collaborative effort involving clinicians, national governing bodies, indemnity providers, and members of the wider multidisciplinary team. This shared aim is clear: to create a safe, structured environment in which athletes can rely on high‑quality medical care, and clinicians can practise with confidence and clarity.
FSEM President, Dr Natasha Jones, reflected on the publication of these documents:
“As the standard setting body for team care in the UK, FSEM is delighted to publish our minimum training and qualification standards for Doctors looking after athletes in non-grassroots sports settings. This important framework gives much needed employment guidelines for governing bodies to ensure their athletes receive safe medical care from appropriately trained and appraised Doctors. My huge thanks to the team who undertook the necessary work to achieve this consensus.”
Why These Standards Matter
The new minimum standards directly address this gap. They outline the qualifications, certification and experience recommended for Doctors across four tiers of team‑care work, from pitch‑side immediate care through to senior clinical leadership roles. They also link to complementary guidance on indemnity and immediate care provision, forming a robust, interlocking framework that supports both athlete safety and professional wellbeing.
Dr Jim Kerss, Chair of the FSEM Team Care Committee:
“By defining clear minimum standards for Doctors working in non‑grassroots sport, FSEM is strengthening governance and protecting the health of athletes through the delivery of medical care by appropriately trained, qualified and accountable healthcare professionals across the UK.”
Importantly, the standards recognise the realities of a diverse workforce. They provide a clear pathway for clinicians at different stages – including those still in training – to understand how they can develop safely and appropriately within sport. The guidance also acts as a valuable reference point for educational supervisors, training programme directors, sporting organisations, and indemnifiers when evaluating roles, responsibilities, and risk.
Supporting and Protecting the Workforce
A key motivation behind the development of these documents was ensuring that clinicians are not placed into positions beyond their competence or training. Early‑career Doctors in particular can find themselves in demanding environments without the experience needed to manage complex cases or make high‑stakes decisions.
By defining minimum levels of training and expected qualifications, the new framework helps prevent practitioners being exposed to avoidable risk. At the same time, it provides reassurance for athletes, teams, and employers that the professionals supporting them have training aligned with best practice.
The standards also integrate the growing role of the Diploma in Team Care, positioning it as an important component of the development pathway. With its third sitting scheduled soon, the Diploma continues to grow as a central component of workforce preparation within SEM.
A Collaborative Approach
Throughout the process, FSEM placed strong emphasis on collaboration. National governing bodies and the Elite Sport Committee were consulted during the development of the standards to ensure that they reflect the complexity, variation, and demands of sport at the non‑grassroots level.
This approach means the guidance is not only clinically sound but also grounded in the realities of elite and performance environments. It also sets the stage for ongoing evolution. The standards will remain in place until 2028, at which point they will be reviewed and refreshed based on user feedback and developments across the sector.
Foundation for Future work
While the initial publication focuses on Doctors, work is already underway to develop equivalent standards for Allied Health Professionals. FSEM has made clear that this next phase will be built through broad engagement across the multidisciplinary team, reflecting the organisation’s ongoing movement toward a fully multidisciplinary identity and future college status.
Practitioners from all backgrounds are encouraged to participate in the development process, reinforcing the shared mission of raising standards and strengthening the systems that support athlete care.
Accessing the Standards
The new minimum standards and accompanying documents are now publicly available on the FSEM website.
Clinicians, employers, and sporting organisations are encouraged to review the guidance and consider how to integrate it into existing structures, recruitment processes, and governance.
Listen to Dr Jim Kerss talk about the new documents on the recent Front Line to Finish Line podcast episode.
Acknowledgements
The Faculty would like to place on record their appreciation to the following contributing individuals and organisations.
Firstly, to Drs Karen Jones, Moiz Moghal, Daniel Broman and Justin Hughes, who were involved in the development of the three documents.
Secondly, to thank the representatives from the Rugby Football Union (RFU), England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), Football Association (FA), Rugby Football League (RFL), UK Sports Institute (UKSI) and Home Country Sports Institutes (HCSI), after consultation on the documents.
