Apico Pain Management opens Lewes office
Dr. Rany Abdallah says there is a need for pain management care in the Cape Region. With two practices already open in Bear and Dover, Abdallah has opened a third in Suite 104 at 750 Kings Highway in Lewes.
“I know for a fact that people were traveling from Lewes and other places in Sussex County all the way up to Milford and even farther north to come to see me,” Abdallah said.
He said patients making the commute asked when he would venture farther south. He also noticed the ZIP codes of referring physicians were from southern Delaware. Abdallah said he is a multimodal specialist who does medical management, therapy coordination and also procedures. He said he is one of two doctors, in some cases the only one, to offer certain treatments and procedures.
Abdallah treats a wide variety of ailments: headaches, abdominal pain, post-surgical pain, arthritic pain and neuropathic pain, to name a few. His typical patient is someone in their 50s, 60s or 70s suffering from back or neck pain. Treatments can range from physical therapy to procedures that require sedation. Patients play a large role in the level of care provided.
“If the patient wants to be able to play a round of golf, I want to make sure that I’m able to help them,” he said.
Other patients may just want to do laundry or walk short distances without being in pain, he said. By establishing the patient’s goals, Abdallah can tailor expectations.
“The way to fail is to put expectations way too high where it’s unachievable. Essentially, once the patient and I decide what the goal is, we try to get to that goal,” he said.
Abdallah begins with the least-invasive treatments. If that doesn’t work, he said he will discuss with the patient more advanced options.
Abdallah’s wife, Erica, helps him at his Dover and Bear practices while nurse practitioner Sonia Palermo will be at the Lewes office. Abdallah said his well-trained team also includes medical assistants and scribes.
Accepting nearly every insurer in the state, Abdallah said his team is trained to assist the patient in navigating the complex world of insurance. He also believes it’s important that people suffering from pain consult with a pain management specialist as one of the first steps. Abdallah believes he and others in his field can guide patients through their treatment.
“If the patient sees their primary doctor and has any sort of back, neck, knee or shoulder pain, it's a good time for us to see them to make sure that they have the right imaging and medication,” he said.
More information about Apico Pain Management is available at apicopain.com or by calling 855-932-7426. Online booking is coming soon, but appointments can only be made over the phone.
