Reporting to the AFL Head Doctor, the Associate Club Doctor plays a key role in delivering expert medical care across the Carlton Football Club’s AFL, AFLW and VFL programs. This is a unique opportunity for an experienced doctor to gain exposure to an elite AFL environment through a supporting AFL medical role, while also taking primary responsibility as the Lead Doctor for the AFLW and VFL programs.
This role provides medical support across training and match day environments and plays an integral part in health, fitness and injury management – contributing to medical decision-making regarding player welfare and working collaboratively within a multidisciplinary high-performance team.
The role offers genuine breadth of clinical experience, working across multiple elite football programs to oversee player health and wellbeing, support injury prevention and management, and facilitate safe and effective return-to-play outcomes.
The Associate Club Doctor will be engaged as an Independent Contractor under a Medical Services Agreement and appointed as an AFL Official, with a requirement to comply with all AFL rules, regulations and policies.
Key Responsibilities
- Conduct player injury consultations, including assessment, diagnosis, treatment and management, and referral to appropriate specialists where required. Communicate findings, recommendations and management plans to relevant coaches and members of the medical and high-performance teams.
- Provide expert advice on injury prognosis, return-to-play timelines and potential performance impacts, collaborating with the multidisciplinary team to develop and oversee rehabilitation plans.
- Take a lead role in medical decision-making regarding player health, welfare and safe participation in training and competition.
- Determine when a player is medically fit to commence conditioning programs, rejoin team training and return to competition following injury or illness.
- Coordinate medical imaging, specialist consultations and other investigations, ensuring outcomes and recommendations are appropriately communicated and documented.
- Participate in regular multidisciplinary meetings with coaching, medical, high-performance and allied health staff to monitor player health, wellbeing and performance, and provide relevant updates and reports.
- Oversee and monitor rehabilitation programs delivered by high-performance and allied health staff to ensure alignment with medical recommendations and return-to-play objectives.
- Maintain accurate and timely medical records, including injury management, treatment plans and medication use, in compliance with Club, AFL and relevant medical governance requirements.
- Provide medical coverage at training sessions, match days and other football-related activities as required.