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Sports Medicine Physicians

Diagnose, treat, and help prevent injuries that occur during sporting events, athletic training, and physical activities.

$265,930 a year (for the broader BLS group this job sits in).

now
36%

of the working time. Estimate.

Kinds of work
  • 57%
  • 8%
  • 35%
3%

Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.

Half the desk work within reach
Already

On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.

Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030

0%25%50%75%100%2027202820292030NowDesk work: 57% of the time
Chosen to Ceiling: the share
DateNow
NowEnd of 2030

What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .

At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.

How far this has come

With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 3%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 35%. Today's estimate: 36%.

0%10%20%30%40%50%2023202420252026GPT-4, March 2023: 0% within reachGPT-4 Turbo (Nov 2023), November 2023: 0% within reachGPT-4o, May 2024: 0% within reachClaude 3.5 Sonnet (June 2024), June 2024: 0% within reacho1-preview, September 2024: 0% within reachClaude 3.5 Sonnet (Oct 2024), October 2024: 0% within reacho1, December 2024: 0% within reachClaude 3.7 Sonnet, February 2025: 3% within reacho3, April 2025: 16% within reachGPT-5, August 2025: 21% within reachGemini 3 Pro, November 2025: 27% within reachClaude Opus 4.5, November 2025: 27% within reachGPT-5.2, December 2025: 29% within reachClaude Opus 4.6, February 2026: 30% within reachClaude Mythos Preview (early), April 2026: 35% within reachToday (estimate), September 2026: 36% within reach
Each step is a new best model measured by METR, four in five; the dashed end is today's estimate. Point at a dot for the model.

A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.

The tasks

Sorted by . 27 tasks from .

TaskKind
Conduct research in the prevention or treatment of injuries or medical conditions related to sports and exercise.Done yearly or less by most who do it. 20%1.7 work weeks2.1 work days to 3.5 work weeks0%Half by Apr 2029
Record athletes' medical histories, and perform physical examinations.Done hourly or more by most who do it. 12%42 min25 min to 1.1 hStays with people
Diagnose or treat disorders of the musculoskeletal system.Done hourly or more by most who do it. 12%38 min17 min to 1.3 hStays with people
Order and interpret the results of laboratory tests and diagnostic imaging procedures.Done hourly or more by most who do it. 7%25 min13 min to 50 min100%Half by now
Evaluate and manage chronic pain conditions.Done several times a day by most who do it. 7%50 min25 min to 1.7 h99%Half by now
Examine, evaluate and treat athletes who have been injured or who have medical problems such as exercise-induced asthma.Done several times a day by most who do it. 6%42 min21 min to 1.4 hStays with people
Supervise the rehabilitation of injured athletes.Done several times a day by most who do it. 4%50 min25 min to 1.7 hStays with people
Provide education and counseling on illness and injury prevention.Done several times a day by most who do it. 4%25 min13 min to 42 min100%Half by now
Record athletes' medical care information, and maintain medical records.Done hourly or more by most who do it. 4%13 min4 min to 25 min100%Half by now
Coordinate sports care activities with other experts, including specialty physicians and surgeons, athletic trainers, physical therapists, or coaches.Done several times a day by most who do it. 3%25 min13 min to 50 min100%Half by now
Refer athletes for specialized consultation, physical therapy, or diagnostic testing.Done several times a day by most who do it. 3%17 min8 min to 29 min100%Half by now
Prescribe medications for the treatment of athletic-related injuries.Done several times a day by most who do it. 2%13 min8 min to 21 min100%Half by now

Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.

Jobs that share skills with this one

From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.

Where this job works

The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025). Counts are for the broader BLS group this job sits in.

Where the most of these jobs are

The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025). Counts are for the broader BLS group this job sits in.