The Department of Anesthesiology at LSU Health Shreveport has created an ACGME approved, one-year pain medicine fellowship program. The program involves multidisciplinary pain management training in all aspects of patient care including diagnostics, therapeutics, and minimally invasive surgical procedures. This highly competitive Fellowship program accepts two Fellows per year and graduated its first board-certified Anesthesiologist in the 2016-2017 academic year. Fellows gain considerable experience in the treatment and diagnosis of all types of pain. In addition, there are excellent opportunities for clinical research.

Our Clinical Pain Medicine Fellowship program was the first in the State of Louisiana with original accreditation in 1996. 
Fellows have a 100% board pass rate for the past several years.

Fellows can expect to have world class training at this program due to robust clinical volume and outstanding academics. Clinical volume can range from 20-60 patients per day. Procedural volume can range from 10-40 per day. Surgical volume can range from 1-10 per day. During the course of the fellowship, the fellow will see approximately 4,000 clinic patients, perform 200 surgeries, and over 1,000 procedures. In addition to this, fellows will publish several times during the year. Lectures are available daily with LSU New Orleans or one on one with one of our world class faculty on site. Oral and written board review is also available daily.

Fellows are given opportunities to attend many national meetings and hands on workshops. Fellows also get to take part in the Medtronic Fellowship Academy. Faculty and fellows in the program have published in peer reviewed journals, authored manuscripts, abstracts, book chapters, textbooks, presented at national conferences and abroad, hold positions on boards of well-respected journals and national organizations. Our team has delivered well over 250 lectures at national conferences, over 1,000 publications, over 300 book chapters, and over 50 textbooks.

   

The working environment ranges from collegial and tutorial academic to private practice. A didactic schedule has been developed to help fellows improve their knowledge base, while helping to improve their clinical decision-making abilities in a very supportive environment.

Locally, this program specializes in the treatment of cancer-related pain. Fellows work closely with the Feist-Weiller Cancer Center and will gain considerable experience in the treatment and diagnosis of cancer-related pain. Fellows will also receive training in acute and chronic pain patient treatment with Drs. Brian Bernhardt & Alan Kaye at the Ochsner-LSU interventional Pain Clinic.  

   

Fellows are exposed to all areas of pain including all procedures and surgeries. During the course of the year, the fellow will have the opportunity to perform the following procedures and surgeries (or more):

  • Spinal cord stimulator trials/implants/explants/revisions (Abbot, Boston Scientific, Medtronic, Nalu, Nevro, Saluda, Stimwave)
  • Peripheral nerve stimulator trial/implants/explants/revisions (Boston Scientific, Stimwave)
  • Intrathecal pump trials/implants/explants/revisions (Medtronic, Flowonix)
  • Kyphoplasty/vetebropasty (Medtronic, Stryker)
  • Sacroiliac joint fusion (Painteq, Omnia)
  • Facet fusion (Surgentec)
  • Interspinous spacer implants/explants/revisions (Vertiflex, Minuteman)
  • Percutaneous image guided lumbar decompression (MILD)
  • Basivetebral nerve ablation (Intracept)
  • Osteocool
  • Discography and intradiscal injections
  • Regenerative medicine; bone marrow aspirate concentrate, platelet rich plasma
  • Botox for migraine          
  • All ganglion blocks and radiofrequency ablation; trigeminal ganglion, sphenopalatine ganglion, Stellate ganglion, splanchnic nerves, celiac plexus, hypogastric plexus, lumbar sympathetic, ganglion impar, etc.…
  • All peripheral nerve blocks and radiofrequency ablation; occipital, glossopharyngeal, intercostal, ilioinguinal, iliohypogastric, genitofemoral, pudendal, obturator, femoral, genicular, etc.…
  • All major and minor joint injections
  • All epidurals; cervical, thoracic, lumbar, caudal, transforaminal, interlaminar
  • Medial branch blocks and radiofrequency ablation
  • Procedures are performed using a variety of techniques: landmark, ultrasound, and fluoroscopically guided

Training Locations

All procedures and surgeries take place in new state of the art facilities. Facilities in Shreveport feature a brand new 9 exam room clinic, 2 procedure suites, and several operating rooms.  Clinic and procedures/surgery occur every day during the week. 

Fellows will spend the majority of their time at Ochsner LSU Health and a portion of time at Feist-Weiller Cancer Center. Fellows and attendings have weekends free from clinical duty.

Apply for the Pain Medicine Fellowship

Applicants interested in the 2024-25 academic year may submit the following documents between January 1, - May 31, 2023. Interviews will be conducted between April 1 - May 31, 2023.

1. Fellowship Application (click to download)
2. Three (3) Letters of Recommendation
3. MSPE
4. USMLE Step Scores
5. Personal Statement
6. CV

Email all documents to Benjamin.Strickland@lsuhs.edu.

 

   

Clinical Pain Fellowship

Department of Anesthesiology

Clinical Pain Fellowship

Department of Anesthesiology