Name Zafar Iqbal | Role Doctor | |
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Dr. Zafar Iqbal, born in Pakistan, is the First-team doctor at Crystal Palace F.C. since the summer of 2015.
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Education
Zafar Iqbal graduated as a doctor at the Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry in 1999, and completed an MSc in sports and exercise medicine (SEM) at Queen Mary University in 2005. Since specialising in SEM, Dr Iqbal has participated in the sportscare team in various clinics.
Career
His first job in football was as the team doctor at Leyton Orient FC, before he moved to Tottenham Hotspur, where he worked in the teams Academy and then was promoted as the first-team doctor in 2008. In the meantime, he has held the position of Chairman of the FA Medical Society for the past 8 years. As Liverpool's former first-team doctor, he was based at Liverpool F.C.'s training ground Melwood where he assisted the medical and sport science team in devising daily programmes for each individual player and the overall medical care of the players. He announced his departure on the 13th of January 2015, from Liverpool F.C. because of family reasons.
Community activities
Dr Iqbal believes that athletes should receive the same specialist care to enable them to return to their return to activity as quickly as possible. Dr Iqbal has as specialist interest in the promotion of Physical Activity in Chronic Disease prevention (Type 2 Diabetes and Cardiovascular disease) within communities, being the Special Advisor on Health for the football charity London Tigers. He supports the Oliver King Foundation with their aim to raise awareness and screening for Sudden Arrhythmia Death Syndrome (SADS) and for the Automated external defibrillator (AED) to be made widely available. Each week approximately 12 young people die from a sudden cardiac arrest in the UK according to the charity, Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY), based on official statistics ONS 2006 citing the cause of sudden death among people aged 35 and under.