Referrals being accepted for new Pain Management Clinic at VMH

Veterans Memorial Hospital’s (VMH) Pain Management Clinic began October 8, offering new pain management options to the area communities through provider Shawn Blake, CRNA. Patients with chronic pain who have attempted therapies such as massage, chiropractic care, physical and/or occupational therapy without long-term relief can be referred to the Pain Management Clinic to schedule an appointment. Patients should ask their primary care provider, physical therapist, or chiropractor to send a referral to Veterans Memorial Hospital. Once the referral is received, the hospital’s Pain Management Coordinator will reach out to schedule the appointment.

Shawn Blake earned his Doctorate Degree in Nurse Anesthesia from the University of Iowa. He is certified by Premier Pain Management for Chronic Pain. “At a young age, I was exposed to the impact male nurses had on a predominately female field, which brought me into the field of nursing,” explains Blake. “While working in the ICU, I was drawn to anesthesia and subsequently into both acute and chronic pain management.  I have now been providing these services for over five years.”

Shawn Blake provides epidural steroid injections, joint injections (including; shoulder, knee, hip, and facets), and treatment of Complex Regional Pain Syndromes (CRPS). He also offers medication management when appropriate, without the use of narcotics.  When non-invasive methods of improving pain are not providing adequate relief, there are more advanced options the Pain Management Team can use including the following:  

Trigger point injections:
This procedure is based on targeting painful areas of the muscle that contain trigger points, or knots, that form when muscles do not relax. During this procedure, the provider uses small needle(s) to inject a local numbing medication into the trigger point. Sometimes a steroid medication is also injected into the trigger point(s). By injecting medication into that trigger point, it is made inactive and pain is alleviated. Sometimes repeat treatments are needed in order to gain a longer period of relief.

Fluoroscopic Guided Joint Injections:
This procedure uses a special imaging device with contrast dye to help provide a more direct look at the  joints and aid the provider in delivering the medication directly into the source of the pain.

Image-guided Nerve blocks:
This therapy also uses a special imaging device called a C-arm to allow for direct administration of pain medications around the spine where nerves might be compressed or aggravated.

Facet injections:
Injections of pain medication or steroids that are given in the facet joints of the spine to help reduce or alleviate back or neck pain.

For more information, call the Infusion and Outpatient Treatment Center at Veterans Memorial Hospital at 563-568-3411 and ask for the Pain Management Clinic.