01/23/2024
In the 1960s and ‘70s, the pioneering work Jack C. Hughston, MD, was doing in sports medicine through his private practice, the Hughston Orthopaedic Clinic, began to draw both national and international attention. Soon the leaders of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons approached him about establishing a pilot project for a resident training rotation in orthopedic sports medicine. Next, the Chairman of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Tulane University at the time, Dr. Jack Wickstrom, partnered with Dr. Hughston on the project, and thus the discipline of sports medicine was born in Columbus, GA.
In 1968, Dr. Hughston went on to establish the Medical Center Orthopaedic Foundation. His private orthopedic practice was the primary source of funding for the Foundation which, in turn, paid the stipends for the Tulane University residents who rotated with him. In 1973, realizing that his Foundation had greater potential and purpose, Dr. Hughston and his wife Sarah and son Edgar incorporated the Hughston Sports Medicine Foundation, a private research and education foundation operating out of his own private practice. In 1978, it was incorporated as a 501(c)(3) entity.