Thanks glenntaj for sharing your experience - I'm about to go for an MRI tomorrow for left shoulder and cervical spine - so reading a first hand account was useful. I wish you all the best for finding the right treatment.

Physiatrist - I had to google that one - not a term I'm familiar with but it's exactly what it sounds like: "a medical doctor who specializes in physical medicine, rehabilitation, and pain medicine. These spine specialists focus on the body's musculoskeletal system, which includes bones, joints, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and nerves.".

So I then searched "physiatrist NZ" to see if I could find any in my country - the only thing that came back was "psychiatrist". I guess we have more mental health problems here than we do physical ones - clearly not a specialty deemed important here - or maybe it has a different name? Does anyone know?