Pain Matters Podcast Network

Join us for a timely discussion on the recent Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ruling to ban non-compete clauses. This decision can significantly alter the landscape of employment across various sectors, including healthcare. In this special episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, hosts Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and Mustafa Broachwala, DO, sit down with Michael Johnson, Jr., Esq. to dive deep into the nuances of this ruling, and what it means for medical professionals, especially those in pain medicine. Our expert guest, Michael Johnson, Jr., Esq., is a seasoned physician contract lawyer and owner of Michael Johnson Legal. He has counseled more than 1,000 physicians on contract law. His noteworthy Instagram features ongoing commentary on critical issues. Give him a follow @physiciancontracts. Michael provides a clear breakdown of the potential impacts and the legal intricacies involved. Tune in to hear: This is a must-listen episode for all healthcare providers who are questioning how this federal agency rule will impact their future careers and opportunities.

Join us for a riveting exploration into the rapidly evolving world of artificial intelligence (AI) in interdisciplinary pain medicine. This episode of the Pain Matters Podcast features a thought-provoking discussion on the transformative potential of AI and the ethical challenges it introduces. Hosts Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and Mustafa Broachwala, DO, are joined by two distinguished experts: Tune in to discover: Find out how AI is reshaping healthcare delivery, enhancing patient outcomes, and posing new questions about the intersection of technology and medical ethics. This discussion is crucial for healthcare providers looking to stay informed about the latest developments in AI and its impact on the field of pain medicine.

Join us for a comprehensive exploration into the advocacy and personal dedication that shapes the world of pain medicine. In this episode, our discussion hones in on a critical juncture in pain medicine — the anticipation of the Washington Health Technology Clinical Committee's (HTCC) decision on Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) coverage. This decision could transform the landscape of pain management for state employees, state-sponsored health plans, and injured workers under Washington Labor and Industries (L&I), reaching over 2.5 million people. Hosts Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and Mustafa Broachwala, DO, are joined by a distinguished panel of guests: Brett R. Stacey, MD, from UW Medicine; and Steven Stanos, DO, and Fangfang Xing, MD, from Swedish Pain Services–all of whom were integral leaders as part of the Washington State Physicians State Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) Work Group. We also welcome Richard North, MD, from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine–a pioneer in the field of pain medicine and a historic advocate as it relates to neuromodulation and previous hearings regarding SCS in Washington State. Together, we’ll dive deep into the nuances and state of current and historic healthcare policies, the heroic advocacy work of the Washington State Physicians SCS Work Group, and the broader implications of the impending HTCC decision for providers and patients alike. In this episode, you'll learn: Historical Context: The Vital Role of the Washington State Physician SCS Work Group:Understanding the HTCC's Influence and Approach: Navigating Healthcare Policy in Washington:Journey to the HTCC Decision: Implications for Pain Medicine Providers and Patients: Tune in and stay informed, get involved, and understand the profound implications of these decisions on the quality of life for countless individuals. Remember, your involvement and awareness as a pain medicine provider contribute to the advancement and betterment of patient care across the nation. Note: At the 47:45 mark, we reference that the upcoming hearing is in January of 2024. While this was accurate at the time of the recording, this hearing has been pushed back. The final decision about coverage terms will occur after a meeting on February 16, 2024.

On this episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, we turn our attention to a Viewpoint article published in JAMA on December 18, 2023 entitled “Corporate Influences on Science and Health—the Case of Spinal Cord Stimulation”. Written by the same lead author of the widely criticized Cochrane Review of Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) for Low Back Pain, this recent article blames all physicians who defend SCS for having corporate interests and suggests that no research in any specialty should be influenced by industry. Hosts Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and Mustafa Broachwala, DO, sit down with Nathaniel M. Schuster, MD, from UC San Diego Health. All are authors to responses in Pain Medicine to the Cochrane Review by Traeger et al. –see Pain Matters Episode 21 and articles PMID: 37067491 & PMID: 37195450 by Durbhakula et al. This episode responds to the questionable allegations made by Traeger et al., questioning the integrity of all SCS research and the pain physicians who utilize SCS for patients. We do a fact-check on the JAMA article and take a deep dive into understanding the true nature of corporate influences on SCS. In this episode, you'll gain insights into: Listen in as we navigate these complex waters, aiming to provide a balanced perspective on the interplay between industry funding, scientific research, and clinical practice in pain medicine. This episode is a must-listen for anyone looking to understand the multifaceted nature of pain medicine in today's healthcare landscape. CORRECTION (11:10-11:50): SCS for FDA requires a premarket approval (PMA). There is no need for clinical data if it is possible to prove equivalence. For external powered devices where RF is the predicate device, FDA 510k pathway is required.

Recorded during the 2023 AAPM Annual Meeting, Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and co-host Mustafa Broachwala, DO, navigate this multifaceted topic alongside two esteemed guests: Dan Brounstein, Chief Strategy Officer with Saluda Medical, and Yele Aluko, MD, MBA, Ernst & Young Americas Chief Medical Officer. In this episode, we explore:

Join us as we delve deep into the pivotal March 18, 2023 local coverage determination (LCD) that has shaken the pain medicine community by limiting access to sacral lateral branch radiofrequency ablation and imposing stringent documentation requirements to demonstrate the medical necessity for sacroiliac (SI) joint injections. In this episode, host Dr. Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and co-host Dr. Mustafa Broachwala, DO, tackle the contentious LCD that threatens to restrict options for patients suffering from chronic SI joint pain and their dedicated doctors. To shed light on this vital issue, they're joined by Zachary L. McCormick, MD, Chief of Spine and Musculoskeletal Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine and Deputy Editor-in-Chief for AAPM’s journal, Pain Medicine; Lynn Kohan, MD, Chief of Pain Medicine and Fellowship Director at the University of Virginia School of Medicine; and Steven Cohen, MD, the Chief of Pain Medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and Senior Executive Editor for Pain Medicine. All guests come with a wealth of experience and insight, having been at the forefront in addressing the ramifications of this LCD.

Join host Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and co-host Mustafa Broachwala, DO, as they discuss a rising, yet often overlooked, issue - workplace violence in healthcare settings, particularly in pain management. Our featured guest for this episode is Mercy Udoji, MD, CMQ, FASA, pain physician and associate professor at Emory University School of Medicine, and a renowned expert on workplace violence in the medical field. She is the senior author of the 2023 article, "Violence in the Pain Clinic, the Hidden Pandemic". This seminal piece of work shines a light on the escalating incidences of workplace violence against healthcare workers, which has markedly intensified since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. It also underscores the particular susceptibility of pain clinicians to workplace violence. Lastly, Dr. Udoji discusses strategies to prevent such situations and action we can take when they arise. We also welcome W. Michael Hooten, M.D., from the Mayo Clinic to share astonishing results from a recent workplace violence survey conducted by AAPM wherein more than 80% of respondents noted they had called security in their practice for a workplace disturbance in the past year. Tune in to discover: Vulnerability of Pain Clinicians:The Connection between Patient and Worker Safety:Risk Factors:Predicting Violent Behavior:Training Gap:Tips for Safety:Listen now for this critical conversation as we aim to shed light on workplace violence and explore preventive strategies to safeguard ourselves and our peers better.

Join us as we discuss and provide expert insights into current events impacting our management of pain and substance use disorders. In this episode, host Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, dives into critical current events and regulatory changes impacting the field of pain medicine and their implications for patient care. She interviews two guests at the forefront of pain medicine, substance use, and addiction: Dr. Antje M. Barreveld, MD, and Dr. Sudheer Potru, DO, FASA, FASAM. Dr. Barreveld serves as the Director of Education and Outreach, Co-Founder of Substance Use Services, and the Medical Director of Pain Management Services at Newton-Wellesley Hospital. She also holds a position as an Associate Professor of Anesthesiology at Tufts University School of Medicine and serves on the board of the American Academy of Pain Medicine. Dr. Potru is triple-board certified in anesthesiology, pain medicine, and addiction. He serves as the Director of the Complex Pain Clinic at the Atlanta VA Medical Center and as Assistant Professor at the Department of Anesthesiology at Emory University School of Medicine. Tune in to hear the latest on: Innovative Harm Reduction Approaches, such as the Fentanyl Vaccine: How do these cutting-edge strategies fit into the broader landscape of pain management and addiction treatment?

In the second episode of our two-part conversation with Kathleen Holton, PhD, MPH, she expands on her work with food and chronic pain, taking a closer look at the nutritional supplements and dietary strategies that pain patients can use to manage their conditions. Tune in as she discusses common issues within the American diet and explores how weight, nutrient deficiencies, and dietary misconceptions have played a role in the rise of chronic pain conditions. Join host Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and co-host Mustafa Broachwala, DO, for this episode of the Pain Matters Podcast as they continue their conversation with Dr. Holton about her research on the relationship between diet and pain perception. The three return to discuss practical approaches doctors and patients can take to mitigate inflammation and chronic pain symptoms. Tune in to discover:

Cochrane Library’s recently published article questioning the clinical benefit of spinal cord stimulation for low back pain has stirred controversy throughout the pain medicine community. In response to these findings, we sat down with neuromodulation specialists & Pain Medicine journal editorial board members, Zachary McCormick, MD, and Nathaniel M. Schuster, MD, to offer our in-depth reaction and analysis of the March 2023 report. In this episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, host Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and co-host @Mustafa Broachwala, DO, are joined by Zachary McCormick, MD, Chief of Spine and Musculoskeletal Medicine at the University of Utah & Nathaniel M. Schuster, MD, Associate Clinical Director of the Center for Pain Medicine at UC San Diego. We are live in-person at AAPM’s 39th Annual Meeting in Fort Lauderdale, FL, to discuss the implications of the Cochrane Library’s spinal cord stimulation review and what it means for providers and patients. Additionally, David Caraway, MD, PhD, Chief Medical Officer of Nevro Corp., calls in to give his expert insight on the controversial inclusion and exclusion of certain studies and how this impacts the conclusions of the review. Lastly, we go to Vwaire Orhurhu MD, MPH, author of a widely-read letter to the editor published in JAMA in response to the Hara et al. study, which is critical to the Cochrane Library Review’s conclusions. Tune in to discover: Reference: Traeger AC, Gilbert SE, Harris IA, Maher CG. Spinal cord stimulation for low back pain. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2023, Issue 3. Art. No.: CD014789. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD014789.pub2. Accessed 29 March 2023.

Pain is invisible and highly subjective—for physicians, overcoming these barriers requires interpreting the signs of pain through a patient’s actions and words. This can be a delicate process, since the next step a provider takes to relieve a patient’s pain can have long-term effects on their outcome. Exploring the nuances of patient advocacy, Stephanie Vanterpool, MD, FASA, MBA, Pain Medicine Specialist, Anesthesiologist, and Director of Comprehensive Pain Services at the University of Tennessee Medical Center, has dedicated her career towards strategically empowering patients to advocate for themselves and towards educating clinicians outside of pain medicine to advocate for their patients’ pain. In this episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, host Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and co-host Mustafa Broachwala, DO, are joined by Stephanie Vanterpool, MD, FASA, MBA to discuss how physicians can empower patients by listening to their needs to identify effective pain treatments. Tune in to discover: References JAMAAnaesth Intensive CareThe journal of painPalliat Support CareJ Clin AnesthPain management nursing : official journal of the American Society of Pain Management NursesPalliative Medicine10.1177/0269216311402711Journal of pain research

The history of our medical institutions is fraught with racial prejudices that have shaped our understanding of pain in black patients, leading to unequal treatment across our healthcare system. Working to dismantle these disparities, Aderonke Pederson, MD, has dedicated her career to bridging the treatment gap. Her groundbreaking work addresses faults in our current system, increasing the quality and accessibility of care in communities that have historically been overlooked or exploited by medical institutions. In honor of Black History Month, Pain Matters Podcast host Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and co-host Mustafa Broachwala, DO, are joined by Aderonke Pederson, MD, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and Director of Research Equity for the Clinical Trials Network and Institute at Massachusets General Hospital, to discuss the history of racial inequality in our healthcare systems and how we can overcome the prejudices that influence how doctors treat chronic pain. Tune in to discover:

When we’re young, we often hear the phrase “you are what you eat.” While this is true, it doesn’t paint the full picture. Kathleen Holton, PhD, MPH, has dedicated her career to mapping the ways food can influence pain pathways in our bodies, studying the chemical processes behind physical pain and its psychiatric comorbidities. Her groundbreaking research on glutamate receptors has shown that a dietary approach may hold the answer, offering promising results for treating conditions such as fibromyalgia and migraines. In this two-part episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, host Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and co-host Mustafa Broachwala, DO, are joined by Kathleen Holton, PhD, MPH, Associate Professor of Health Studies at American University, to discuss the science behind managing pain with diet and how these systems work within the body. Tune in to discover:

Exploring the boundaries of pain management, the Psychedelics and Health Research Initiative (PHRI) pursues groundbreaking research on the therapeutic potential of psychedelics for pain patients. By examining how these psychoactive compounds act at the intersection of pain, identity, and memory in our brains, Dr. Furnish’s work has challenged our understanding of pain mechanisms while paving the way for novel treatments that may offer effective long-lasting relief. In this episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, host Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, and co-host Mustafa Broachwala, DO, are joined by Associate Professor of Anesthesiology and the Medical Director of PHRI at UC San Diego Health, Timothy Furnish, MD, to discuss the background, mechanism of action, and potential efficacy of psychedelics for pain management and what they tell us about pain pathways in the brain. Tune in to discover:

Working on the pandemic’s front lines, Soo Kim, MD, was part of the medical team at Johns Hopkins University that first identified and treated signs and symptoms of Long COVID and its chronic pain symptoms. Her groundbreaking involvement in one of the first Post-Acute COVID Syndrome (PACS) Clinics has since become the blueprint for how many physicians treat acute and chronic pain among Long COVID patients. In this episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, host Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, is joined by special guest host Mustafa Broachwala, DO, to interview the Director of Pain Medicine at Mt. Sinai Hospital, Soo Kim, MD, to discuss her contributions to Long COVID research and some of the novel therapies she’s developed and encountered to treat COVID-19-related pain. Tune in to discover:

In the second episode of our two-part conversation with Dr. Andrea Chadwick, MD, MSc, FASA, she discusses the obstacles she overcame on her path to developing a successful research lab in a field she is passionate about. Listen in as she shares her professional and personal struggles and outlines the blueprint other researchers can use to harness their potential and advocate for patients with invisible illnesses. Join host Dr. Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, in this episode of the Pain Matters Podcast as she continues her conversation with Dr. Chadwick about launching FACE Lab, a pain exploration lab dedicated to advancing research on fibromyalgia. The two discuss how Dr. Chadwick secured funding for FACE Lab and what her successes can teach other physicians about jump-starting their careers in medical research. Tune in to discover:

Research is the backbone of medical innovation. However, it can be challenging to find the resources and support needed to launch your own research lab and lay the foundation for its success. Dr. Andrea Chadwick is no stranger to the adversities researchers face–tune in as she shares her struggles and outlines the steps others can take to follow their passions into research and secure funding for their projects. In this two-part episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, host Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, invites Associate Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology, Pain and Perioperative Medicine at the University of Kansas Medical Center, Andrea Chadwick, MD, MSc, FASA, to revisit the journey she took to create FACE Lab, a pain exploration lab dedicated to advancing research on fibromyalgia. Tune in to discover:

Pain management is more than just treating the causes of pain. How you communicate with patients shapes how they think about their pain–the right educational tools can improve recovery rates by mitigating the effect pain has on the rest of a patient’s life. In this episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, guest host Beth Darnall, PhD., sits down with Penney Cowan, the founder and CEO of the American Chronic Pain Association (ACPA), an institution dedicated to educating patients and patient families for more than 40 years. They discuss Penney’s journey from a patient suffering from pain to a leading figure in the world of pain management and how her work revolutionized how we talk about pain today. Tune in to discover:

One of the more innovative pain care models to debut recently involves a multidisciplinary team of acute and chronic pain specialists working together to reduce opioid utilization after surgery and improve patient satisfaction. How does the model work and what are lessons learned from scaling a perioperative pain clinic? In this episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, host Dr. Shravani Durbhakula, MD, MPH, MBA, sits down with Associate Professor and Director of the Perioperative Pain Program at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Dr. Marie N. Hanna, MD, MEHP, MBBCh to discuss how she innovated, launched and scaled a personalized perioperative pain clinic. Results of this model, one of the first in the U.S., have been overwhelmingly positive with reduced hospital stays and readmissions, reduced opioid usage, and improved patient satisfaction. Tune in to discover:

Data has long been used to predict whether certain patients will respond well to treatment. The next step in the evolution of using algorithm-centered tools to chart the course for pain medicine is the personalized care made possible through precision medicine technology. In this episode of the Pain Matters Podcast, host Shravani Durbhakula, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A., chats with Christina Le-Short, MD, MBA, senior director of clinical development and strategy at Scipher Medicine, a precision immunology company. They discuss the current state of healthcare and explore the prospect of AI-powered solutions as well as other innovative technologies. How are these new tools–and their ability to visualize outcomes that physicians alone cannot–shaping the future of pain care? How can a clinician contribute to industry? Tune in to discover: