Southwest Spine and Pain Center: One medical team, one-stop care

ST. GEORGE – It’s not always easy getting access to specialized medical care all in one place. Sometimes a patient may have to travel out of town, to larger metropolitan areas like Salt Lake City or Las Vegas, in order to receive the treatment they need. Yet, for anyone suffering from spinal pain, be it acute or chronic, far-flung travel can become a thing of the past.

“We offer everything under one roof,” said Brook Mickelson, a nurse practitioner with Southwest Spine and Pain Center.

Mickelson is a new addition to the center’s staff, and brings 12 years of experience in pain management. She is board-certified in pain management nursing and is a former director of Acute Pain Service at McKay Dee Hospital in Ogden, and more recently worked in a private clinic. “I am grateful for all of my past experiences, and am excited to be a part of such a dynamic, skilled and caring team of providers,”

Brook Mickelson, nurse practitioner at the Southwest Spine and Pain Center | Photo courtesy of Southwest Spine and Pain Center

An integrated team provides integrated care

The doctors Mickelson mentions are a trio of physicians who make up what she calls the center’s unique “integrated team.”

This team consists of Drs. Jon Obray, Rick Obray, and Dr. Derek Frieden. All are board-certified in their particular field of expertise, Mickelson said. Combined, they also bring 20 years of experience to the table. They have also interned and held fellowships in such institutions as the Beth Israel Deacon Medical Center (Harvard University), the Mayo Clinic, and John Hopkins Hospital.

Both Dr. Frieden and Dr. Jon Obray are board-certified anesthesiologists with specialties in pain management. Frieden is also the current Director of Spine and Pain Medicine at Intermountain Healthcare’s Dixie Regional Medical Center, while Dr. Jon Obray also acts as the hospital’s Director of Neurosciences.

The Southwest Spine and Pain Center is a part of the Southern Utah Neurosciences Institute at Dixie Region Medical Center. The center coordinates closely with hospital staff – such as Dixie Regional’s new neurosurgeon, Dr. Chad Cole, and orthopedic spine surgeon, Dr. Mike Major – when it comes to the overall care of their patients.

“Our primary goal is to be responsive to the needs of the patients,” Dr. Frieden said.

The third member of the center’s unique team is Dr. Rick Obray, who is board-certified in both diagnostic radiology and interventional pain medicine, and has “a rare combination of training,” Dr. Frieden said. He is one of the few physicians in the country who has training in both diagnostic imaging (imaging technologies such as X-rays, MRIs and CT scans for example) and pain management. Dr. Rick Obray also specializes in minimally invasive, image-guided procedures that use the latest in diagnostic imaging techniques and technologies.

As spine pain and disorders can have many different causes, the doctors’ combinations of skills help them better pinpoint and diagnose a patient’s pain, as well as deduce the best way to treat it.

“We provide the most advanced diagnostic and procedural team,” Dr. Frieden said.  By utilizing the latest in diagnostic technology and interventional pain management procedures, allowing the center to provide a full-range of treatment.

Dr. Frieden said a reason for the center’s focus on state-of-the-art procedures and equipment was to help reduce the risk of opiate (painkiller) dependencies in patients. Through the interventional therapies and minimally invasive surgical procedures practiced by the center, a patient’s pain can be better managed and treated, thus ending a continual need for medications.

A listing of Southwest Spine and Pain Center’s services can be found here.

About Southwest Spine and Pain Center

“This clinic is very unusual,” Dr. Freiden said, once again remarking on the center’s ability to meet patient needs. “All patient needs are addressed in one facility.”

Dr. Jon Obray said Intermountain was looking into designing a comprehensive spine program that would provide patient care in a “convenient and efficient matter.”  The Obrays and Dr. Frieden helped further develop that concept, leading to the creation of the Southwest Spine and Pain Center and Southern Utah Neuroscience program. The clinic operates as a private entity as part of the Dixie Regional Medical Center Neurosciences Institute.

Dr. Frieden added the center was also built to provide great care in a service-friendly manner to patients at an affordable cost.

Southwest Spine and Pain Center is located in the Dixie Regional Health and Performance Center at 652 S Medical Center Drive, #110, behind the Dixie Regional Medical Center. Hours are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Friday. Staff at the center can be contacted though the center’s website, or call at 435-656-2424.

The practice is also serving central Utah with clinics in Richfield as well as Cedar City. The center also accepts a wide array of insurances.

A D V E R T O R I A L

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @MoriKessler


Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2012, all rights reserved.

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2 Comments

  • Murat August 15, 2012 at 11:10 am

    “We offer everything under one roof” is something I’d expect from a Wal Mart spokesman. Coming from a medical practice, these words make it sound like a discount doctor shack in Mexico.

  • Kay Lynn Peterson December 29, 2012 at 9:01 pm

    I am a patient of Southwest Spine and Pain along with my mom. We have received nothing but the best service from the doctors and staff. It’s nice that if I need x-rays, an MRI or CT Scan, Physical Therapy, and other needs that I don’t have to go over to the hospital or Insta Care or elsewhere to get them when they are available right there in that same building, making it a lot easier and quicker.

    I would recommend Southwest Spine and Pain to anyone who is suffering major (or minor) pain. Dr. Frieden is our Doctor and we really appreciate all he has done for us. We also appreciate Drs. Jon and Rick Obray for their services when Dr. Frieden wasn’t available. The nurses and other staff are great and always have a pleasant attitude while in our service.

    Thank you, EVERYONE, at Southwest Spine and Pain for all your wonderful service and atmosphere!

    KLP

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