Jeff G. Konin, PhD, ATC, PT, FACSM, FNATA

PARTNER

Partner

Dr. Jeff Konin currently serves as Clinical Professor and the Director of the Doctor of Athletic Training program at Florida International University in Miami, Florida.  He is a founding partner and owner of The Rehberg Konin Group, and also is founder/owner of Konin Consulting, LLC, and PHD420, INC, a 501(c)(3), both formed in Clearwater, Florida.  Dr. Konin is a member of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Fame, and a recognized Fellow in both the American College of Sports Medicine and the National Athletic Trainers’ Association.

Academic Background

Dr. Konin earned a bachelor's degree in health & physical education from Eastern Connecticut State University in Willimantic, Connecticut, where he was the first graduate of the school to become a certified athletic trainer and presented with an athletic department leadership award upon graduation.  In 2003, Dr. Konin was recognized with the Outstanding Alumni Award from Eastern Connecticut for his professional contributions to sports medicine. Additionally, the Department of Athletics at Eastern recognizes an outstanding senior student entering a career in sports medicine with the Jeff Konin Award.

Dr. Konin possesses two Master’s Degrees, one in Athletic Training and Sports Medicine Education from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia that he obtained in 1989, and the other from the University of Delaware, located in Newark, Delaware, in 1994 with a specialization in Physical Therapy.  In 2004, Dr. Konin completed his PhD in Physical Therapy from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Teaching Background

Dr. Konin presently directs the Doctor of Athletic Training program at Florida International University in Miami, Florida, the first of its kind in the Southeast and only one of seven in the entire country. AT FIU, he is a full-time Clinical Professor where he also conducts research and is actively engaged in University service. He previously served as Professor in the Physical Therapy Department at The University of Rhode Island, a faculty member in the Department of Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine at the University of South Florida, in Tampa, Florida, faculty at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, and faculty at Delaware Tech in Georgetown, Delaware.

During his teaching career, he has been recognized with the following awards:

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• Nominated for the FA Davis Award in 1999 recognizing the National Outstanding Physical Therapist Assistant Educator (Delaware Tech)

• Nominated for the Excellence in Teaching Award in 2000 and 2001 (Delaware Tech)

• Nominated for the Hall Faculty Award in 2003 recognizing his service as an advisor (JMU)

• IMPACT Leadership participant recognition 2005 (JMU)

• Nominated for the Outstanding Junior Faculty Award in 2004 (JMU)

• Three times invited Distinguished Lecturer 2002, 2009 & 2017 (Delaware Tech)

• Education/Administrator of the Year 2010 (Southeast Athletic Trainers’ Association)

• Dana Clark Distinguished Lecturer 2001 (Eastern Connecticut)

• Continuing Education Excellence Award 2007 (NATA)

Additionally, Dr. Konin has held adjunct faculty appointments at the University of Virginia as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Shenandoah University as an Approved Clinical Instructor, Nova Southeastern University as an adjunct Professor in the transitional Doctor of Physical Therapy Program, Brown university Department of Family Medicine, University of Connecticut, University of St. Augustine, Western Carolina University, University of Idaho, Campbell university, and AT Still University.

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Dr. Konin is a recognized leader in the area of continuing professional development. He has been a frequent invited guest speaker, presenting on various sports medicine topics throughout the United States and internationally in Austria, England, Italy, Norway, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Spain, and Romania. He has also spoken at the National Athletic Trainers' Association Annual Meeting & Clinical Symposium, The NATA Educator's Conference, the American Physical Therapy Associations Combined Sections Meetings, American College of Sports Medicine, Team Physician Conference, at NATA State & District Meetings, and APTA State component meetings in Florida, Oregon, Arkansas, Tennessee, Virginia, and New York. In 2002, Dr. Konin was a Distinguished Visiting Lecturer at the University of Alabama, and has given similar invited presentations for numerous organizations throughout the world.

Administrative Background

Dr, Konin is currently the Director of the Doctor of Athletic Training degree program at Florida International University in Miami, FL where he oversees all aspects of the academic administration of the program.

He has also served in numerous administrative and leadership positions.  These include as the Director of Intercollegiate Athletics at Eastern Connecticut, the Chair of the Department of Physical Therapy at the University of Rhode Island, the Vice Chair and the Kennedy Endowed Chair (Athletic Training) of the Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine at the University of South Florida, Executive Director of the Sports Medicine & Athletic Related Trauma (SMART) Institute at the University of South Florida, Program Director for the Graduate Athletic Training Degree with a Youth Sports Injury Specialization at the University of South Florida, and the Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Medicine at James Madison University. In 2008, he was recognized as a finalist for the Health Care Heroes Educator Award issued by the Tampa Bay Business Journal for his leadership and community engagement at the University of South Florida.

Most recently. Dr. Founded PHD420, INC, a non-for-profit company specializing in the education and research of cannabis.  He is considered one of the leading experts in the sports medicine arena on this topic having presented to many professionals, teams, and at conferences.  He is a member of the Society of Cannabis Clinicians, the American Cannabis Nurses’ Association, and the American Medical Marijuana Physician’s Association.  He has been an invited speaker at the Cannabis Science Conference and the Medica Medicine & Sports Conference in Dusseldorf, Germany. He is also the developer of the Cannabis Healthcare Educator Certificate program.

Clinical Background

Dr. Konin has enjoyed an extensive and varied career as a practitioner.  In 1989, he worked as a clinical athletic trainer in Birmingham, Alabama, for Healthsouth.  During this time, he worked closely with world renowned orthopaedics surgeons Dr. James R. Andrews and Dr. Larry Lemak treating numerous patients and athletes including many professionals.

Dr. Konin has taken care of high school athletes in Alabama, Delaware and Florida, and has contributed to the care and coverage of numerous high school state tournaments and events.  He has also worked closely with youth sports and provided care at many youth sporting events and camps, including with the Boston Red Sox in 1989 and the Connecticut Starter AAU Basketball Camp from 1988 – 1990.  From 1991 – 1996, Dr, Konin was a clinical athletic trainer and licensed physical therapist at Pike Creek Sports Medicine in Wilmington, Delaware and Lewes Physical Therapy in Lewes, Delaware.  In this role, he not only treated clients in a private practice rehabilitative setting, he also served as the head athletic trainer for Delaware Blue Bombers of the American Basketball Association (ABA) professional basketball team.

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Dr. Konin was appointed as the Director for Sports Medicine at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia in 2003. In this role, he coordinated all aspects of student athlete care for 29 teams and approximately 700 athletes, concurrently holding the position of NCAA drug-site coordinator, being responsible for the drug education and testing program.  He also served as the Assistant Athletic Director at JMU from 2003 – 2006, overseeing all aspects of performance services, to include sports medicine & athletic training, strength & conditioning, nutritional services, sports psychology, and equipment.

In 2006, Dr. Konin became the Executive Director of the Sports Medicine & Athletic Related Trauma (SMART) Institute at the University of South Florida.  In this role, he supervised the community athletic training coverage of ten high school athletic programs, and numerous community events.  Among these events include the Chi Chi Rodriguez Golf Classic, State High School boys & girls championships for volleyball and basketball, USA soccer regional events, and many other activities.  At USF, Dr. Konin served as the coordinator of medical coverage for the ACHA Ice Hockey team, and as a rehabilitation consultant to the USF athletics sports medicine department.

Dr. Konin has also volunteered his clinical expertise to the United States Olympic Committee.  In 1992, he served as a volunteer athletic trainer at the Olympic Training Center in Lake Placid, and in 2009 did the same in Colorado Springs.  In 1996, Dr. Konin was a part of the track & field medical staff for the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games held in Atlanta, Georgia. From 2010-2012 Dr. Konin served as the medical coordinator for the United States Wheelchair Rugby Paralympic Team, winning gold medals at the World Championships in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and World Zonals in Bogota, Columbia, South America. Dr. Konin’s athletic training experience stretches to stints with the professional rodeo circuit and NASCAR’s mobile sports medicine unit.

Dr. Konin has also served as a zone leader at the finish line for multiple Walt Disney World marathons races.

Professional Service & Consulting Background

Dr. Konin was a participant in the leadership program at Delaware Tech, and completed the Impact3 Leadership program at James Madison University in 2005.  His leadership skills and expertise has been shared with numerous organizations in various consultative roles.  He has sat in advisory/consultant roles to the Easter Seal Society, the National Center for Sports Safety (NCSS), the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Major League Soccer (MLS), Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), Aegis Science Corporation, Doody Publishing Company, SLACK Incorporated Publishing, and numerous others.  He has served as an expert in many cases, and assisted many academic institutions with program development, review, and risk management. Dr. Konin serves in the role of editorial board member and/or manuscript reviewer for over a dozen sports medicine related publications.

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Dr. Konin has contributed his time and expertise to committees, task forces, and others to include the National Athletic Trainers Association, the American Physical Therapy Association, and the American College of Sports Medicine. In 1995, Governor Tom Carper of Delaware appointed Dr. Konin to serve on the State Examining Board of Physical Therapy.

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Dr. Konin’s consulting roles have included the areas of continuing education and professional development, policies and procedures, academic program development, accreditation, appropriate medical care and coverage, reimbursement and billing procedures, textbook publishing, emergency action planning, pre-participation physical examinations, sports safety, injury prevention and risk reduction, sports first aid, personnel & supervision, leadership, health care services utilization, and medical records review.

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Dr. Konin has been awarded the NATA Service Award (2008), NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award (2011), the NATA’s Distinction in the Advancement of Legal, Ethical, and regulatory Issues Award (2019), and the NATA International Service Award (2020)

Scholarship Background

Dr. Konin's research and scholarship has focused in a number of areas, with an emphasis on preventing, assessing and managing injuries sustained by children playing sports. From 1991 – 1994 he served as the Clinical Coordinator of Research for the All Sports Clinic of Delaware.  In 2003, he founded and directed The National Center for Youth Sport Injury, a center devoted to educating health care providers, parents, coaches, and the media on the etiology, prevention, and management of children's sports-related injuries. In his role as Executive Director of the SMART Institute he coordinated numerous research projects and community educational programs geared toward the reduction in the number and severity of sports-related injuries.

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Dr. Konin has written and contributed to over 30 textbook chapters and has published over 50 sports medicine related articles.  In addition, he has written over 25 textbooks: Special Test’s for Orthopedic Examination (4 editions, translations in Korean, Portugese, and Spanish), Clinical Athletic Training, Management Strategies in Athletic Training (5 editions), Documentation for Athletic Training (3 editions), Practical Kinesiology for the Physical Therapist Assistant, Documentation for Athletic Training (Translation in Portugese & accompanying Laboratory Workbook), Reimbursement for Athletic Training, Working as a Team Physician, Sports Emergency Care, and Rehabilitation from the perspective of the Athletic Trainer/Physical Therapist. Dr. Konin also served as the series editor for CD-ROM's titled Goniometry, Gait Analysis, and Manual Muscle Testing. His innovative work is integrated into many healthcare and inter-professional curriculums and professional development programs.

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Dr. Konin is one of the co-authors of the NATA’s published position statement on Pre-Participation Physical Examination (2014) and the Best Practices for Athletic Training Documentation Paper (2017). He has been a contributing member to many professional committees and task forces including NATA International Committee, NATA Sexual Abuse Education Task Force, NATA Professional Responsibility Work Group, NATA Student Leadership Committee.

Media Quotes

Dr. Konin has served as a popular resource for media outlets being recognized as an expert in sharing information with the general public pertaining to sports injuries.  His quotes and sound bites have appeared in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, the St. Petersburg Florida Times, the Tampa Tribune, Training & Conditioning Magazine, the National Alliance for Youth Sports Magazine, the New Jersey Business Magazine, the Track & Field Mom Newsletter, and on Fox News Television, National Public Radio, Bay News 9 Tampa, and Channel 8 NBC WFLA Tampa.