FAQ's

Pain management is a rapidly growing specialty that has evolved out of the need to evaluate, rehabilitate and treat people with debilitating pain. Your physician may refer you to a pain management specialist if he/she determines that your pain has become out of control or is affecting your daily life activities.

Physicians who specialize in pain management have received specialized training in recognition of the complex nature of pain. You should seek out a physician who is board-certified in his primary specialty, such as anesthesiology, neurology or physical medicine, in addition to being board-certified in pain management by a national accrediting board.

If you have unrelenting, debilitating pain that does not respond to conservative treatments, your primary care physician or your current treating physician may recommend that you would benefit from seeing a pain-management specialist.

At The Physicians Pain Center, we accept new patients by a referral from your current treating physician. We recommend you see your primary care physician or family physician to coordinate your referral to our clinic. This will allow the necessary medical records and diagnostic test results to be forwarded to us prior to scheduling an appointment. Once we receive your medical records, our physicians review them in order to ensure that our services will be beneficial to you. Our office will then contact you with an appointment.

Low back, neck and joint pain, migraine headaches, work- and sports-related injuries, abdominal pain and pelvic pain are the most common types of discomfort treated. Other types of pain, such as cancer-related pain, post-surgical pain and neuropathic pain, are treated as well.

Your condition will be thoroughly evaluated, and various treatment options will be discussed with you. Treatment options may include diagnostic and/or therapeutic nerve blocks, trigger-point injections, epidural steroid injections, joint injections, radiofrequency nerve ablation, medication management, spinal cord stimulator or intrathecal pump implant, and/or referral for surgery, physical therapy, diagnostic imaging or psychological counseling.

The amount of pain reduction is never certain at the beginning of treatment. Typically, over the course of treatment, one could expect between 50- and 100-percent reduction in his/her pain. Unfortunately, chronic pain is like many other chronic illnesses, in that frequently, the treatment can only reduce the symptoms. Our goal at The Physicians Pain Center is to reduce your pain in order for you to achieve the highest level of relief, which will then allow you to return to a productive and satisfying lifestyle.

Both of our offices in St. Augustine and Palatka are equipped with the necessary equipment to perform most of the procedures in the office. We also perform procedures at Flagler Hospital and St. Augustine Surgery Center. The location for your procedure will be discussed with you by your treating physician.

Most major insurance plans cover pain management under your specialist benefit coverage. At The Physicians Pain Center, we accept most major insurances, Medicare, workers’ compensation and auto-accident coverage. We will attempt to verify your coverage prior to your first appointment, but it is your responsibility to check with your insurance carrier to ensure coverage and whether a referral is required for a specialist’s office. We will be happy to assist you in understanding your insurance coverage as it relates to our services.