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How This Father-Daughter Doctor Duo at Ringside Decide When to End a Fight

June 15, 2021

It’s not unusual for a daughter to follow in her father’s footsteps – but it’s not every daughter who could fill this father’s shoes.

In this special Father’s Day episode of Hartford HealthCare’s More Life podcast, you’ll meet Dr. Anthony Alessi and his daughter, Dr. Stephanie Alessi-LaRosa. Both doctors are not only neurologists, but are also fight doctors — ringside physicians who keep a close eye on the neurological behavior of the fighters in an effort to prevent serious injury. This father-daughter duo are tuned into the fight like no other spectators. It is their mission to advocate for the fighter, not the fans, the coaches or the sponsors.

“I was ringside in high school and college, seeing what he does, and thinking how great it is to work with athletes. He had really led the way with sports neurology as a field. I felt that was actually a good fit for me and for what my goals were professionally. Now I’m ringside with my dad taking care of athletes. Having his wisdom and his experience and being there to witness it all has helped me a lot.”[/pullquote]
~ Dr. Stephanie Alessi-LaRosa

While Stephanie followed her father’s lead toward the ring, and toward making combat sports safer, her father followed in his daughter’s footsteps as well. Last year, Dr. Alessi joined his daughter’s team at the Sports Neurology Program at Hartford HealthCare’s Ayer Neuroscience Institute.

“In my role now with Stephanie, we’re both advocating for extreme athletes. For me it’s been great having Stephanie who has adopted the same philosophy. When Steph was hired with Hartford HealthCare, they came to me and asked if I would like to join the team and work with Steph. We now have national recognition in the field of combat sports. It’s been a tremendous evolution for me at this stage of my career.”[/pullquote]
~ Dr. Anthony Alessi