Thom Mayer

MD, FACEP

Dr. Mayer has been a leader in times of crisis for over 25 years, navigating some of the most significant challenges imaginable. He is the Medical Director for the NFL Players Association and an emergency physician-sports medicine leader of international renown.

He served as the Command Physician at the Pentagon Rescue/Recovery Operation on 9/11, Incident Commander for the inhalational anthrax outbreak in Washington, D.C. that same year, and led a Team Rubicon Mobile Emergency Team in Ukraine following the outbreak of war.

He is among the most widely respected leaders in times of crisis and is a highly sought after speaker and consultant across many businesses and industries.

He was nominated to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio and is a member of the Indiana Football Hall of Fame and the Hanover College Athletic Hall of Fame. USA Today named him one of the “100 Most Important People in the NFL.” Tom Peters, the internationally acclaimed expert on leading, referred to his work as “gaspworthy.” His books have sold hundreds of thousands of copies and won numerous awards.

Dr. Mayer’s work on leading in times of crisis and battling burnout in all businesses and industries is universally respected as both unique and inspirational.  He has been featured in national and international media, including CNN, BBC, ABC, NBC, CBS, the New York Times, the Washington Post, ESPN, the LA Times, the Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, Fox News, Freakonomics podcast, and many others.

He is one of the most widely sought speakers on leading in crisis, innovation,  customer experience, hardwiring flow, trauma and emergency care, pediatric emergency care, EMS/disaster medicine, and sports medicine. His work in each of these areas has resulted in changing the very fabric of patient care. He has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles, 100 book chapters, and has edited or written 25 textbooks.

Dr. Mayer was the originator of the entire NFL Concussion Guidelines program, and thus has changed the nature of the management of concussions world-wide.  He gives many examples of his NFL experiences in his talks.

On Sept. 11, 2001, Dr. Mayer served as one of the Command Physicians at the Pentagon Rescue Operation, coordinating medical assets at the site. The BestPractices physicians at Inova Fairfax Hospital were the first to successfully diagnose and treat inhalational anthrax victims during the fall 2001 anthrax crises, and Dr. Mayer has served on the Department of Defense of Defense Science Board Task Forces on Bioterrorism, Homeland Security and Consequences of Weapons of Mass Destruction. 

Despite these many accomplishments, he continues to push the envelope of innovation in emergency medicine, sports medicine, and indeed healthcare business itself.