Bisson, Fineberg receive ESPY’s Pat Tillman Award

Two faculty members in the Department of Orthopaedics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, recently were honored on a national stage.

Leslie J. Bisson, the June A. and Eugene R. Mindell, MD, Professor and Chair, and Marc S. Fineberg, clinical associate professor, are members of the Buffalo Bills’ medical staff which, along with the team’s athletic training staff, received the Pat Tillman Award for Service at the 2023 ESPY Awards, ESPN’s annual awards show.

The Bills’ medical and training staffs were recognized not only for their lifesaving emergency response for Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin, but also for “their commitment to every member of the team.”

A visibly emotional Hamlin presented the staffs with the award, which honors the late NFL player and U.S. Army Ranger who died in Afghanistan in 2004. Tillman had enlisted following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the U.S.

Bisson is medical director for the Bills and Fineberg is team orthopaedist. While they were not able to attend the ESPYS, they did attend this year’s Super Bowl and NFL Honors awards show.

“We appreciate the honor and the award. We hope it extends to all those other people who do this day in and day out,” Bisson says.

Hamlin went into sudden cardiac arrest in January during a Monday Night Football game against the host Cincinnati Bengals. He required CPR and the use of an automated external defibrillator (AED) on the field before he was taken in an ambulance to University of Cincinnati Medical Center (UCMC). UCMC doctors later said it was the immediate care from the Bills’ and Bengals’ staffs that saved Hamlin’s life.

“It’s one of the things you prepare for. The team doctors and trainers — we watch what happens after the play,” Bisson says. “We practice for these life-threatening situations.”

Bisson explains that the medical and training staffs conduct drills during the year so they are prepared to act, even in rare situations like the one they faced with Hamlin.

“It becomes like a drill at that point. Everybody did a great job of doing what they rehearsed. We practice for that type of a rescue,” Bisson says.

“It was a really good team game plan, and it turned out very well,” Fineberg says. “I do think we did everything right. There were a lot of different details that brought it all together.

“Damar is a wonderful, kind, loving person. I love how he’s utilized the platform. There will be many more lives saved from what we experienced and learned that night.”

While some have called the lifesaving treatment and Hamlin’s subsequent recovery a miracle, the physicians say the various procedures in place helped lead to the positive outcome.

“There’s evidence for all the things we did. It’s trained personnel, equipment and a plan,” Bisson says. “When you have those things in place, it radically enhances your chance to have a favorable outcome.”

“CPR is easy to do,” Fineberg adds. “You just have to get people used to it. All you need is good form and a good cadence, and you can save a life.”

What happened to Hamlin — which took place in front of such a large audience — has had positive effects, including getting more people trained in the use of CPR and more available use and training on AEDs.

“It seems to be doing that in a pretty big way. It got everybody collectively focused,” Bisson says. “Now, if that focus moves to learning what to do in that situation, you can make a difference.”

“I'm thrilled for Damar. I don’t feel totally deserving of it (the award) because we were just doing our job,” Fineberg says “The NFL has been wonderful to us. Thankfully, I’m part of a really great team that was well prepared, and we were working with a person who had a strong will to survive.”

Bisson has helped save other professional athletes in his career.

He was part of the first response team that was key to a successful outcome when Bills tight end Kevin Everett experienced on-field paralysis during a kick return in the 2007 season opener against the Denver Broncos at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

He was also a first responder in helping to save Florida Panthers forward Richard Zednik, who lost five pints of blood when the skate of a teammate accidentally cut open his carotid artery in a game in Buffalo in 2008. 

While it ended his football career, Everett was able to walk again; Zednik returned to play the following season.

Bisson received his medical degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He completed an internship in general surgery from Johns Hopkins, a residency in orthopaedic surgery from Cornell University Medical Center and a fellowship in sports medicine from American Sports Medicine Institute.

He is president of UBMD Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine, medical director/team orthopaedist for the Bills and Sabres, and team orthopaedist for SUNY Buffalo State University.

Fineberg received his medical degree from Northwestern University. He completed a residency in orthopaedic surgery at New York University Hospital for joint diseases and completed a fellowship in orthopaedic sports at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School.

Head team physician for the Sabres, Fineberg specializes in arthroscopic knee and shoulder reconstruction and advanced techniques for major tendon and ligament repairs.

He is actively involved in the UBMD athletic training outreach program and serves on the board of directors of UBMD Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine.