The Department of Family and Community Medicine would like to welcome our newly matched fellows, Chris Grijalba, D.O., and Mark Carrasco, M.D. These family medicine physicians will join our UAB-Cahaba Sports and Exercise Medicine Fellowship, starting in May.
This ACGME-accredited fellowship combines comprehensive sports medicine training with opportunities in exercise and lifestyle medicine and family medicine practices. Within the two-year program, our fellows will become experts in all domains of sports medicine including sports cardiology, ultrasound, comprehensive concussion management, exercise as medicine, and much more.
Additionally, our incoming physicians will earn a Master of Science in Exercise and Nutrition degree. This supplemental program provides additional expertise in exercise prescription, nutritional assessment/recommendations, and motivational tools for behavior change.
UAB’s Sports & Exercise Medicine Fellows get the opportunity to work directly with athletes at every level, from youth sports to UAB student-athletes to some of Birmingham’s most competitive professional teams, as the UAB Sports & Exercise Medicine program provides on and off-field care for the Birmingham Legion FC, Birmingham Bulls Hockey, Birmingham Vulcans Rugby and others. This year, our fellows will work with the United States Football League (USFL), assisting in the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of various injuries for two teams, the New Orleans Breakers and the Birmingham Stallions.
“We are excited to welcome Drs. Carrasco and Grijalba to UAB and our sports medicine team,” said Assistant Professor and Program Director, Ian McKeag, M.D. “They have proven themselves to be confident leaders in their previous practices. I know they will help us to continue growing the roots of this fellowship and to push forward towards our goal of establishing ourselves as a top program in the region and country.”
Grijalba completed his medical education at Western University of Health Science, College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific Northwest in 2020, and his undergraduate education at Oregon State University in 2011. He is a member of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine and the American Academy of Family Physicians. During his residency, he assisted in team coverage for the UNC Tar Heels Men’s Lacrosse team - where he learned alongside athletic trainers for hands-on assessments and treatments for upper and lower extremity alignments.
Carrasco is an alumnus of St. George’s University School of Medicine, where he graduated in 2019, and earned his undergraduate degree from Binghamton University. He is also a member of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine and the American Academy of Family Physicians. Carrasco became Chief Resident in 2022 and was a member of five committees at Nuvance Health. During his residency, he assisted in team coverage for the Marist College Football team, providing acute athlete injury management during home games.
The new fellows will join current fellows Anthony D’Onofrio, D.O., and Jesse Gettinger, M.D. and the UAB Sports and Exercise Medicine program this summer. Learn more about their work and the Sports and Exercise Medicine Fellowship here.