I started out at Cedars. It's a real hit a miss place, and I had a couple of disasters there, including a physiatrist who went out of her way to write a letter to the file, to the effect that I didn't have RSD! (It took an examination and detailed letter from Robert J. Schwartzman, M.D. to undo the damage with my disability carrier.) And with all respect to baseballfan, UCLA's pain program does not have a good reputation at all, based upon everything I've heard.

I have been seeing Dr. Richeimer for seven years this month and think the world of him, even though the USC Medical School campus is not exactly convenient for people coming from the Westside. That said, they accept most insurance, which seems to be getting increasingly rare in LA. Here's his contact info for anyone who's interested:

Steven Richeimer, M.D.
Director, U.S.C. Pain Management Center
Chief of Pain Medicine and Assoc. Prof. of Anesthesiology and Psychiatry
Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California
1520 San Pablo Street, Suite 3450
Los Angeles CA 90033
323-442-6202
323-442-6255 (fax)

That said, for the first few years I saw him, it was only on a consulting basis, with my primary writing the script. That changed when my neurologist retired and Dr. Richeimer became my primary treating physician. I don't know if new patients today would have to jump through the same hoops, or possibly they could just see someone more junior in the office as their primary, working in consultation with Dr. Richeimer, with whom they would have their initial appointment.

Mike