My personal opinion is that pain management docs often have too many patients and those patients are often high maintenance. If you have an urgent need, the staff will often say go to the ER. I've only been to the ER twice in 12+ years and have had to my doc to squeeze me in due to an urgent issue probably 4-5 times. I will suck it up when at all possible, so if I break down and ask for a little extra attention, I don't want to be treated like I'm a PITA.

The funny thing is, I've had stellate ganglion blocks performed by 3 docs. There can be a huge difference in results based upon how this procedure is performed. I experienced the shortest span of relief from the PM doc.

PM docs have actually become more conservative than some other docs when prescribing pain meds. Why? The DEA is scrutinizing all their patient records very closely. I don't think we should be penalized for PM docs over prescribing opiates to people that had no business ever taking them in the first place. I didn't begin taking serious pain meds until 4 or 5 years after developing CRPS, and I had been offered them probably 6 months after being diagnosed. I'm compliant with a pain contract and have been on the same dosages for years. So, I think I deserve to not be treated like an addict by office staff...

I would question what percentage of their current patients have CRPS.

My last doc, whom I think is wonderful and would go back to in a heartbeat, actually closed his practice and is now working in a PM clinic. (I can't imagine he's allowed major changes in either his care or his staff's handling of patients. But I'm an optimist!) So, obviously I'm making some generalizations based on my own experiences and those of others I've spoken with.

Anyway, I think it's a good idea to try and connect with other CRPS patients and see what options are available to you, within the farthest possible distance you can manage. --My current routine for managing to get to my doc once a month is probably crazy, but receiving excellent care from someone I trust is one of my top priorities.