Our Maine Street's Aroostook Issue 10 : Fall 2011 | Page 57

MWSC has looked forward to this matchup
with Dr. Flynn for some time. Though Dr. Flynn has
helped when he could amid his busy family practice
over the years, he
wasn’t the designated
provider for all athletes.
And while MWSC has
partnered with various
Pines providers, they
wanted a consistent
primary care provider.
This
intermittent
relationship has since
solidified
into
an
arrangement for the
young athletes who
come here, for the
positioning of MWSC
as a training facility of
choice, and for Pines
to fulfill another dimension of the health center’s
mission.

Dr. Flynn gives each athlete a physical to
establish a complete picture of his or her health and
fitness level. From there the athletes are monitored
for any signs of illness,
fatigue, or physical
trauma related to
training. Although
these
individuals
are in peak condition,
maintaining their health is a serious task. They train
upwards of 20 hours a week and need an equal
measure of refueling and recovery. At this level of
performance, the body is put through tremendous
stress and the stakes are high: One injury or illness
can derail months or even years of dedicated
training. The earlier a condition such as exhaustion
is identified, the faster and more likely the athlete
can get back to 100%. Sweetser emphasized, “A
competent medical staff needs to be there for these
athletes to stay ahead and be successful.”

These young athletes are also treated like
any other patient of Dr. Flynn’s. If they have a cold,
a headache, an ear infection—anything at all—they
are quickly seen. Sweetser refers to Dr. Flynn as
the “medical team on the ground” who monitors

the athletes’ health and sees that they receive
appropriate treatment. Thanks to a robust safety
net—including Cary Medical Center, a dietician, a
sports
psychologist,
and the physiology
lab at UMPI, among
others—athletes can
receive comprehensive
primary and specialty
care right here in the
community. Sweetser
said of the newest
addition, “It’s great to
have Dr. Flynn as part
of our comprehensive
safety network for the
athletes.”
Dr. Flynn and
Sweetser share a
passion for sports and
a profound respect for the athletes. Sweetser has
lived and breathed competitive winter sports since
he skied for his Maine high school and Dartmouth
College. He went on to coach at Bates College
and several nationally known ski clubs. At MWSC,
Sweetser
always
seeks new ways to
promote skiing as a
positive lifestyle for
Mainers. Likewise, Dr.
Flynn is a proponent of
competitive sports not only as a benefit to physical
and mental health, but also as a program to keep
kids focused, busy, and out of trouble. He practices
this sports philosophy when he’s not practicing
medicine. Dr. Flynn has coached Caribou Little
League for several years and Presque Isle High
School Varsity Ice Hockey. He also participates in
the Recreational Men’s Hockey League. One of Dr.
Flynn’s most personally fulfilling accomplishments
came in 2009, when he