Looking for Pain Management Doctors in and around Portland, Oregon
Hi, I just moved to Portland from Santa Fe, New Mexico. Part of the reason for the move was to leave the high altitude of NM because of my really bad breathing issues (asthma and physically small lungs). I also moved with my mom because my SS Disability is hard to live on and my disabilities are getting progressively worse meaning that I can do less and less. The other reasons are that we've always loved this area and wanted to get out here as soon as we could. Some of my best friends already live here too Right now we're getting settled in and are living just south of Gresham. In fact, I think the only thing that was hard to let go of in NM is my PM doctor. I'd been seeing her since 2003 and we really bonded. She also sort-of took over as my primary care Dr. and really helped to discover what the heck is wrong with me: the searches came up empty, but she did more than nearly 90% of previous doctors were willing.
I'm currently on 120mg of Morphine (2 60mg MS Contin 2x daily - switched from Avinza due to it costing almost $300). My BCBS (NMMIP actually) will expire on the last day of September and I'll then transfer to OMIP on October 1st (thankfully that's worked out).
She also sent me with a note to give to a prospective doctor, plus she wants me to give them her info so she can talk to them before my first visit.
To start, I called the Southwest Washington Medical Center's pain clinic in Vancouver, but was told that they only do injections. They said they were getting a nurse practitioner later this month and might be able to get me an appointment, but that it might take a while and that "things are done differently here and I should find a primary care doctor to prescribe my meds".
Is that accurate? If so does anyone have any recommendations?
I also called a PM place somewhere in Gresham and left a few messages, plus I had my doctor leave a referral message as requested on their machine, but they have not called either of us back and I'm pretty sure that they may be anaesthesia based.
Would anyone in the area (location isn't really important right now) like to share any recommendations on a good PM doctor?
Thanks,
Chris
(I had a thread like this, but it was titled *in Oregon*, because at the time I was not sure where I was going to live.)
Re: Looking for Pain Management Doctors in and around Portland, Oregon
Hi Chris!
Welcome to the neighborhood! I couldnt tell from the anacronyms you used what insurance you have, the place I go to takes ssi or medicare or cash on a sliding scale, which is the one I use.
Its called East Side Medical clinic, It's in Gresham. The doctor I see is great, His name is Dr. Peter Mahr, He prefers to use methadone on his pain patients, but he left it up to me to choose to remain on what I was already on before I started with him. There are about 5 other doctors in the clinic, and they all do pain management too. Let me know if your insurance situation wont let you go there, and I can find some other names for you.
East County is in the county medical system, so you find the number in the first part of your phone book under county listings.
good luck, and again, welcome! I have lived here all my life and still think its one of the most beautiful places on earth.
Re: Looking for Pain Management Doctors in and around Portland, Oregon
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fabrashamx
Hi Chris!
Welcome to the neighborhood! I couldnt tell from the anacronyms you used what insurance you have, the place I go to takes ssi or medicare or cash on a sliding scale, which is the one I use.
Its called East Side Medical clinic, It's in Gresham. The doctor I see is great, His name is Dr. Peter Mahr, He prefers to use methadone on his pain patients, but he left it up to me to choose to remain on what I was already on before I started with him. There are about 5 other doctors in the clinic, and they all do pain management too. Let me know if your insurance situation wont let you go there, and I can find some other names for you.
East County is in the county medical system, so you find the number in the first part of your phone book under county listings.
good luck, and again, welcome! I have lived here all my life and still think its one of the most beautiful places on earth.
HTH, Fabby
THanks (for the info and the welcome)
It was kind of late, so I abbreviated instead of putting down the complete program names. The insurance is the Oregon Medical Insurance Pool which is basically a Blue Cross & Blue Shield subsidary for those who can't get "normal" health insurance (I've been rejected by quite a few insurance companies and plans because of my disabilities: unpleasantly ironic? Of course there was one place that offered to insure me, at $2000 a month!) I also have Medicare and because I'm considered "high-risk", BCBS Oregon is letting me use both (I think my OMIP coverage will be my primary and Medicare secondary).
Acording to my literature, if my BCBS (thru OMIP) isn't accepted, then my Medicare should cover it.
I guess the only way to really find out would be to give them a call.
I've only been here for a little under 2 weeks and love it. It's already looking like we might be living in the North East section and/or Gresham (anything is fine, as long as we're not just off a busy street!) I think my favorite thing has to be the trees everywhere and the weather (I'm a rain fan!)
Hrmm, I can't seem to find the clinic or doctor on the internet or in the Gresham phone book. Is he listed? What are the names of the doctors in the clinic? Could this Dr. Mahr also be working at the East County Medical Center? That one also lists an East Side clinic for teens.
Also, just for a little more info, what are some of the other places/doctors?
Re: Looking for Pain Management Doctors in and around Portland, Oregon
I use to live in Portland, in the SE part of town near Gresham. Although it's been several years, when I had surgery in Portland and had pain after, my Neurosurgeon referred me to a pain clinic at Emanuel Hospital. If that doesn't work out, there is always UOHS. That's the University of Oregon Health Sciences Center, and I saw a pain doctor up on the hill for several years.
If you need more help, just post it and I'm sure there are several people besides me that can help you.
__________________
Director
Last edited by RetiredDirector; 09-18-2007 at 10:26 AM.
Re: Looking for Pain Management Doctors in and around Portland, Oregon
Hi Again,
I'm pretty sure we are allowed to give web addys as long as they are ones ending in ORG or GOV and dont sell any commercial products.
Here is the address for Multnomah county
[url]http://www.mchealth.org/services/ics.shtml[/url]
Click on health clinics, and it should show you all the info you need. I'm not real sure on other doctors there, since I have only seen Dr. Mahr, but I do know they all take chronic pain patients.
If that won't work for you, let me know and I will ask around, the doctors I have seen in the past was so long ago they are either retired or not someone I would wish to recommend, lol. But I have a friend in pain managment in East County.
Re: Looking for Pain Management Doctors in and around Portland, Oregon
Thanks for the info: that's the same webby (webby sounds nicer than web page or URL etc ) I ended up with. I'll give them a call tomorrow after I get back from my appointment with a primary (I needed asthma medications and non pain stuff ASAP).
I found OHSU's (um, I could have sworn that was "OSHU"!) Comprehensive Pain Management webby, but need to hold off on that until I get a primary established since that's in their rules.
Hopefully I can get a primary to dispense. It would certainly be nicer to not have to see two different/separate doctors and might keep costs down.
It's looking more likely that I'll be calling Gresham home. My mom went for a job interview and she really impressed them.
Re: Looking for Pain Management Doctors in and around Portland, Oregon
I just got back from seeing a primary care doctor and he agreed to prescribe Morphine, thanks to my previous doctors introduction letter. The problem is that he isn't willing to work with me in regard to pain control as he thinks that 120mg daily is already "a really high dose". He also made some derogatory comments about pain management in general; stating that I "shouldn't go to a PM Dr. because all they want to do is give higher and higher amounts of medicine" and that I should find a "real doctor" like an orthopedist to diagnose the problem instead (sigh, I've seen orthos from Syracuse to Santa Fe and no one has diagnosed anything!)
On the plus side, he did give me a diagnoses of restrictive lung disease. My previous pulmonologist had diagnosed me with obstructive lung disease.
Anyway, I think I'll just take this visit for whatever it's worth and see him while I find someone a bit more willing to work with me.
Right now we're getting settled in and are living just south of Gresham. In fact, I think the only thing that was hard to let go of in NM is my PM doctor. I'd been seeing her since 2003 and we really bonded. She also sort-of took over as my primary care Dr. and really helped to discover what the heck is wrong with me: the searches came up empty, but she did more than nearly 90% of previous doctors were willing. 
