New Oaklawn department to focus on pain-management plans

MARSHALL –  A new Oaklawn Hospital department focusing on pain management will begin accepting patient referrals beginning Aug. 3, 2015.

The new Oaklawn Pain Management Center will be based in Suite 3C of the Wright Medical Building at 215 E. Mansion St., and will begin seeing patients during early September, said the center’s clinical office manager.

“This new Oaklawn department is being created to shape specific plans to address pain issues, rather than merely distribute prescriptions for medications. We will be accepting referrals from primary-care physicians and emergency departments for  acute and chronic pain issues.”

The center’s program will be prepared to diagnose and treat all kinds of acute and chronic pain, including neck and back pain, sciatica, persistent pain after back and neck surgery, arthritis pain in neck or lower back, Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), nerve damage or muscle spasm pain, shingles pain and headaches.

Calls from referring physicians and from patients seeking general information will be accepted at (269) 789-4386. Patients will be advised to speak to a primary-care physician to collaborate on his or her treatment. Patients will be required to have a primary-care physician to continue to cover their other medical issues.

After receiving a physician’s referral, the service will contact the patient and discuss its approach. If the patients still wishes to be seen, the patient will receive appropriate information and forms to complete and return. After the forms are received, the service will contact the patient to arrange for an appointment.

Office-based services will include such procedures as joint injections, trigger point injections, nerve and nerve-root blocks, radio-frequency ablation and other invasive procedures to manage pain issues.

There is a primary focus for patients to have minimal narcotic medication management and for  patients who may be on high doses of narcotics to work to reduce their intake and rely on other interventions. We will work with such patients to create a plan of care to involve other modalities, such as physical therapy or other alternative treatments.

The service is a joint venture for Marshall-based Oaklawn and Findlay, Ohio-based Pain Management Group, a company that has partnerships with 40 other pain-management centers, all hospital-based programs.

This is an important partnership that allows Oaklawn to further solidify its pain-management presence in its service area, as well as expand the breadth of services offered to patients in the communities it serves.

People who would like to receive help in finding a family-practice physician or being referred to an Oaklawn Medical Group physician may call 1-888-OAKLAWN (625-5296).