The Spine Center of DuPage Medical Group

I have never seen a physician on the Spine Center side (vs the pain center side), only Physician’s Assistants. Neither of the two PA’s I have seen have been satisfactory. First, my physical therapist who has over 6 years of history with me (from various injuries) and is a very accomplished and highly regarded medical professional, tried multiple times to call to discuss my history and her theories on my latest back and neck pain symptoms. Only after I called and complained that they were not returning her calls did the PA, Paul Ellis, reach out to her. Then, while he seemed to appreciate the thoroughness of her investigative option suggestions during her call with him, when I met with him he took offense at her presenting and discussing with me all the various causes/​investigations that could be in play and said that she was «overstepping her bounds.» His reaction seemed more ego driven than anything as well as founded in irritation that the information provided to me by her allowed me to question him. (gasp! a patient being able to have informed discussion with a medical provider and try to gain consensus among practitioners!)
The practice is also one where because of scheduling, follow up visits will not be with the same PA but is a round robin based on availability. So you have to go through your history, etc all over again with someone else who may have a different approach/​mindset than the other. The second PA I had to deal with, Kevin Wright, made the comment that due to the back pain experienced, I may have to cut down on running. However, the physiatrist they referred me to indicated that there have been no conclusive studies that show running impacts spinal degeneration in long term runners. There are other factors in play that she would investigate. Kevin cited no studies in his off hand comment thereby negatively impacting his credibility. He would rather spout generalizations and misconceptions with no regard to illustrating validation. No apparent regard as well for the impact of those generalizations on the patient in question. What happened to trying to get the patient back to their normal activity?
Lastly, the two PAs and their assistants are very difficult to work with requiring multiple outreach efforts to resolve the simplest of questions.
While I would recommend the physiatry group that is part of the spine center. I would NOT recommend the group on the spine surgery side.

Took my bf here for his back. He has been complaining of back pain for the longest time. I had to drag him to this place because like most men, he’s allergic to doctors. Nurse that I talked to said that he needed a consultation and an x-​Ray with a Physician’s Assistant someone named Tony. Went there and filled out a ton of forms and questionnaire. Nurse took him to get his X-​Ray. The PA came to talked to us after he got the imaging.
Before the PA even opened his mouth we already had a bad feeling. Tony came off as arrogant, dismissive, and uncaring. He wasn’t opened to hearing about his problem and I felt like he categorized my bf in the group that goes to the doctor for the smallest thing. Which is untrue because my bf didn’t have insurance. Everything, including the X-​Ray was out of pocket. Wished we didn’t waste the time AND money on such horrible service.

My experience (microdiscectomy) could not have been better. Dr. Paul and his assistants are fantastic, explaining everything before and after the surgery. My outcome could not have been better — when I awoke from surgery the sciatic nerve pain that I had been feeling for months totally disappeared. Dr. Paul said that I would be sore for the first 10 days of surgery as the incision healed, which I was, and after that I grew steadily stronger. After 10 weeks I was 100% cleared for full physical activity, and immediately was able to play baseball, work out, etc. I have a small 2″ scar, and that’s the only aftereffect. I would do this surgery again in a second, and I would only do it with Dr. Paul.

I’ve had 2 spinal fusions done successfully by Dr. Ronjon Paul, of this medical group (the 2^nd due to spinal degeneration and severe arthritis is my lower back). The experience was as good as serious surgery can possibly be and the medical group, from office staff, to nurses, to Physician’s Assistants, medical technicians and finally Dr. Paul himself were all excellent. At no point did I feel I was treated with anything other than the finest attention and concern. The Physician’s Assistants were amazingly efficient, attentive, amusing, informative and reassuring. Dr. Paul himself deserves only the highest praise for his expertise, attentiveness, care and reassuring manner. Major surgery can be tremendously stressful for a patient, but Dr. Paul made it as pleasant and relaxed as possible with his calm professionalism. It is hard to express the gratitude I feel to The Spine Center in general and Dr. Paul in particular. He took away my pain and my disability… how can you sufficiently express your emotional debt to someone who spent 3 hours cutting on your back and who made you feel better the moment you awoke from anesthesia than you did on your trip to the hospital? If you are suffering from back pain I cannot guarantee that you will have the same results I have, but I can assure you that you will not find a more top flight medical team than the one that Dr. Ronjon Paul is currently leading.