Q&A with Greenway client: Tampa Bay Lightning Medical Director and Head Team Physician

How long have you practiced medicine? And how did you choose to specialize in sports medicine?

I've been practicing since 1993. I'm going on my 29th year, which is hard to believe! I was always really involved in sports growing up. When I went to medical school, I wasn't sure which direction I was going to go in. But I did a rotation in orthopedics and fell in love with that. I loved to have the connection with sports and wanted to be involved in that side of it, so I did an extra year fellowship in sports medicine.

Tell us about your role as Medical Director and Head Team Physician of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

I've been with the Lightning since 2002. My primary role is to be a liaison between the training staff and the local community physicians, getting the players where they need to be if they need any care. But also taking care of their day-to-day injuries and problems with game coverage, clearing them for return to sport, and doing preseason physicals. And during the playoffs, I have the privilege to travel with them.

What brought you to this role? And what does your team look like?

Back in 2002, they asked me to be a stand-in for the last six months of the season and then asked me to stay on after. Now, it's 20 years later.

My job is really easy because the team has amazing trainers. There's a head athletic trainer and two other trainers that take care of the day-to-day activities with the players. If there's something that is a little bit more serious, or they need medical input, then I'll get involved.

At every game, there's five of us covering the game. There's me as the orthopedic surgeon, a primary care doctor, a dentist, an emergency room physician, and an ocular plastic surgeon. I'm fortunate enough to have a fantastic group of nine other orthopedic surgeons that all have their own area of specialty. If someone has an ankle injury, or a back injury, or a hand injury, we have subspecialists in each of those areas so we can get the best person for that treatment. I organize that to make sure there's game coverage, and we try to get everybody situated as easily as possible for the guys.

When you’re on the road with the team, how do you stay connected to your practice?

I'm fortunate to have a great support team at my practice with two phenomenal PAs and great MAs. While I was traveling for this playoff run, they were seeing patients. And I can get into my desktop remotely. Your desktop remote system really works fantastic. I really rely on that.

Does your family enjoy watching and cheering on the Lightning?

It's been a really big part of our family. My oldest is a girl, she's 27. And then I have two boys, 24 and 22. They grew up with hockey and have been going to the games for so many years.

My youngest was only five years old when we won the first Cup. He's seen so many videos and pictures of him on the ice as a 5-year-old drinking out of the Cup, and he's a sports fan. He’s said, "Dad, I don't remember a single minute of that. You've got to win another Cup." So, when we did, it was really, really special to have all my kids with me and my wife and sharing it as a family. It was the best part.

“Winning the third (Stanley) Cup for me was really, really great. But the thing that made it most special was that I had all my kids with me on that Wednesday that we won.”

Dr. Ira Guttentag, Tampa Bay Lightning Medical Director and Greenway client at Florida Medical Clinic

How did you celebrate after this latest victory?

Winning the third Cup for me was really, really great. But the thing that made it most special was that I had all my kids with me on that Wednesday that we won. We were in the locker room taking pictures with the players and celebrating. This year, they only let family and friends in without press, so it was an intimate setting. There were probably 200 people there, and for my two boys to drink out of the Cup is something that they will remember forever.

The guys are an incredible group, and they're kids themselves. They really embrace the moment, and this is a lifelong dream for them so you can imagine the energy and how happy they were. That night will be etched in my kids’ minds forever. The '04 one was similar, but it's just way more special to have your kids there and see it through their eyes. That was really the highlight.

How did the pandemic impact how you provided care to the team?

Last year, we won the Stanley Cup, but it was kind of bittersweet because they were in the “bubble.” And for me to be out there, I would have had to be away for 70 straight days in a bubble. I wasn't able to participate on a personal level, but I consulted. That part of it was a little disappointing because I wasn't as involved as this year, as things started to settle down and we had the vaccine.

But we just got used to the routine of being tested on a regular basis and dealing with COVID restrictions and isolation. Just making sure that the players were wearing masks and social distancing. The hardest part was in Montreal because we had to get a national exemption for the team. We were quarantined in the hotel for the five days that we were there. That was a taste of the bubble, but certainly wasn't even close to what they experienced the year before.

How long have you lived in Tampa? What's your favorite thing to do in the area?

We moved down here from New York in 1993. It's been almost 30 years. I'm really big into golfing now, so that's my hobby outside of work. I'm into working out and have a Peloton. I try to keep active, play a little bit of tennis, and just enjoy Florida. We love it in Tampa, it's great.

As a physician in Tampa, what do you think is the key to keeping our community healthy?

I think a grassroots educational program about healthy eating and the importance of exercise is key, and then making healthier choices more reasonably priced. I think the biggest issue is that it's very expensive to eat healthy, and somehow figuring out a way to incentivize companies to help with that.

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Thank you, Dr. Guttentag, for your dedication to keeping the Lightning team — and the Tampa community — healthy. We’re honored to serve incredible healthcare heroes like you!