Statements & Policies
Ethical Statement
We do the right thing at the right time because it's the right thing to do. The focus is on you and your family.
We do not have any financial interest in any of the spinal instrumentation and technology used in our spine surgeries. We only use spine instrumentation from leading national companies with a proven international track record for safety and outcomes. This is specific instrumentation used in leading medical centers across the United States. This is the type of spinal instrumentation we would want used in a case involving a member of our family. We do not "own," "distribute" or "profit" from the spinal instrumentation used during your case.
Our spine surgeons receive no money from any ancillary service you are referred to undergo during treatment. The surgeons do not “own” or “make money” from referrals to physical therapy, pain management, or any other required services.
Our surgeons will not treat you differently based on your insurance status. We take care of the entire spectrum of spinal problems from routine degenerative conditions to the most complex care in the sickest patients. We are often sought out from miles away. You will not be turned away from our surgery clinic should your insurance status change outside of your control during your treatment plan.
FMLA/Disability Paperwork Policy
The USA Department of Neurosurgery understands that financial hardships may accompany injuries or diseases of the brain and spine. We are happy to complete FMLA and short-term disability paperwork during the acute recovery phase of an injury or surgical treatment that is being managed by our service.
We do, however, have limitations to the extent we can provide assistance. Most of this is told to us by entities outside of our control.
Requirement for completing FMLA/short term disability paperwork
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Patient must be scheduled for surgery in the coming 6 weeks or had surgery in the previous 6 months
OR
Patient must have been seen in hospital consultation for an acute injury of the head or spine
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Please submit necessary paperwork at least 5 business days prior to deadline. We cannot guarantee your paperwork will be filled out in less than five days after submission.
- We cannot make long term disability assessments/determinations. We do not have that capacity as surgical subspecialists. This is outside our allowed scope of practice.
- We do not advise on work status/restrictions for non-surgical initial office visits. We need to get to know our patients first.
- We do not guarantee approval of benefits if paperwork is completed by our department. Again, this is something outside of our control. We provide the best possible medical documentation for your specific problem.
- We provide this service free of charge. If you are seeking disability that is outside of the above criteria, we recommend consultation with a physician that specializes in disability assessments.
Opioid and Narcotic Pain Medication Following Surgery
First and foremost, USA Neurosurgery is dedicated to properly, treating, triaging, and appropriately managing your pain. You matter to us, and your pain matters to us.
USA Neurosurgery will aggressively manage pain during the post-operative period while you are an inpatient. In addition, USA Neurosurgery will provide an initial prescription for opioids at the time of discharge during the outpatient post-operative course. Selection of opioid narcotic medication depends on the patient's opioid sensitivity, procedure performed, and overall medical status. It is our goal to control pain as much as is medically possible safely.
Post-operative follow up appointments are usually 4-6 weeks after surgery. Post-operative opioid narcotic medication prescriptions may be refilled up to one time. Preferably the request for the refill is during the first post-operative follow up visit with the neurosurgeon.
If the patient reports that more opioid narcotic medication is needed, a return to primary care provider and/or a referral to our pain management team can be facilitated for continued evaluation of the need for opioid narcotic pain medication. We will ensure transition. The specific surgeon providers cannot manage pain chronically due to the clinical challenges in prescribing adequate long-term pain control. Patients requiring long-term, chronic opioid narcotic medications would benefit from a single provider managing the disease process.
As a policy, the neurosurgeons and spine surgeons cannot prescribe opioid pain medication for patients that have not undergone a surgical intervention with one of our surgeons. We are happy to provide documentation for our pain management team within the spine institute or your personal primary care physician about our recommendations.