Shooa Mohammadi, Practice Manager at Northwest Suburban Pain Associates

Summary

Becker’s Healthcare Podcast: In-Depth Summary of Episode Featuring Shooa Mohammadi

Podcast Information:

• Title: Becker’s Healthcare Podcast
• Host: Gracelyn Keller
• Guest: Shua Mohammadi, Practice Manager at Northwest Suburban Pain Associates
• Release Date: July 4, 2025

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1. Introduction to the Episode

In this insightful episode of the Becker’s Healthcare Podcast, host Gracelyn Keller engages in a comprehensive discussion with Shua Mohammadi, the Practice Manager at Northwest Suburban Pain Associates. Recorded live at the 22nd Annual Spine, Orthopedic and Pain Management Conference, the conversation delves into pivotal trends, challenges, and innovations shaping the U.S. healthcare landscape, particularly within pain management practices.

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2. Shua Mohammadi’s Role and Insights

Shua begins by outlining her multifaceted role within Northwest Suburban Pain Associates. As the Practice Manager, she oversees financial and practice management, encompassing both clinical and administrative responsibilities.

Shua Mohammadi [00:56]: "My role at my practice is basically overseeing financial management, practice management, clinically as well as administratively."

Her extensive experience attending the annual conference underscores her commitment to staying abreast of industry developments and fostering professional growth.

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3. Current Industry Trends and Shifts

a. Insurance Influence on Treatment Options

A significant portion of the discussion centers on the growing influence of insurance companies on medical treatments. Shua highlights how insurance requirements, including compliance and prior authorization processes, are reshaping daily operations within healthcare practices.

Shua Mohammadi [01:38]: "The amount of influence insurances have on the treatment that physicians have to offer... is causing a big shift in how the dynamic of a practice would work on a daily basis."

This increasing bureaucratic burden necessitates practices to adapt their workflows and documentation processes to meet stringent insurance criteria, thereby impacting the flexibility and range of treatments offered to patients.

b. Rise of Regenerative Medicine

Shua points to regenerative medicine as a burgeoning field within pain management that is not typically covered by insurance. This trend presents both opportunities and challenges:

• Opportunities: Successfully marketed to patients seeking advanced treatment options.
• Challenges: The self-pay nature of regenerative therapies may limit accessibility for some patients.

Shua Mohammadi [01:38]: "Regenerative medicine... is not covered by insurance. So we have been able to market it very successfully to our pool of patients... But the downside to that would be the self-pay attached to it."

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4. Addressing Staffing and Workforce Challenges

Workforce challenges remain a critical concern across the healthcare sector. Shua emphasizes staff retention as a pivotal strategy for her practice amid a competitive labor market.

Shua Mohammadi [02:54]: "The only solution that comes to mind, and it has worked, is retention, staff retention."

She notes the difficulty in replacing quality personnel and underscores the importance of investing in employee satisfaction and retention to maintain operational stability. Additionally, dealing with complex insurance requirements necessitates the establishment of dedicated compliance and prior authorization teams, coupled with ongoing workforce training.

Shua Mohammadi [02:54]: "We have to have a compliance team on board as well as to get a prior authorization department set up... and continuous and ongoing workforce training for that purpose."

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5. Evolving Role of Orthopedics and Outpatient Care

As outpatient care continues to expand, Shua discusses the evolving role of orthopedics and spine services within the broader healthcare ecosystem. Patient satisfaction emerges as a paramount focus, with an emphasis on reducing wait times for treatments to address pain promptly.

Shua Mohammadi [04:21]: "They want to be seen as soon as possible. You cannot have a patient in pain wait for three months to be seen."

This patient-centric approach not only enhances care quality but also necessitates adequate staffing and resources to meet increasing demand without compromising service standards.

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6. Innovations and Initiatives in Practice

Shua highlights several initiatives and strategic partnerships that have bolstered her practice's efficiency and patient outcomes:

a. Enhanced Billing and Financial Systems

Over the past two years, Northwest Suburban Pain Associates has refined its billing and financial systems to accommodate the rise in self-pay procedures and the integration of regenerative medicine. A robust billing department ensures seamless financial operations and patient transactions.

Shua Mohammadi [05:23]: "We developed our billing department and the financial system a little bit more better over the course of the last... last two years."

b. Utilization of CareCredit

The practice leverages CareCredit as a financial tool to assist patients in managing out-of-pocket healthcare expenses, thereby facilitating access to necessary treatments.

Shua Mohammadi [05:23]: "We do use CareCredit... and we do offer that to patients when they need to use it."

c. Strategic Partnerships

Collaborations with affiliates like RegenX and multiple referring sources enhance the practice's ability to attract a diverse patient base and deliver comprehensive care.

Shua Mohammadi [05:23]: "We are partnering with affiliates like RegenX, we are partnering with multiple referring sources that send us patients."

These targeted initiatives collectively ensure that the practice remains adaptable and responsive to both patient needs and industry advancements.

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7. Concluding Insights

In wrapping up the discussion, Shua reiterates the fundamental responsibility of healthcare organizations to balance financial viability with exceptional patient care. She emphasizes that organizational growth is intrinsically linked to patient satisfaction and the quality of care delivered.

Shua Mohammadi [06:48]: "The more an organization grows is when the patients are happy and they receive the care that they deserve."

Her closing remarks serve as a poignant reminder that while financial management is essential, the ultimate measure of a healthcare organization’s success lies in its ability to meet and exceed patient expectations within available resources.

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Closing Remarks

Gracelyn Keller concludes the episode by expressing gratitude to Shua Mohammadi for her valuable insights. The conversation not only sheds light on the current challenges within pain management practices but also underscores the importance of strategic adaptation and patient-centered care in navigating the evolving healthcare landscape.

Timestamp Range Covered: [00:35] to [07:16]

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

Is Gracelyn Keller with the Beckers Healthcare Podcast and we are live at the 22nd annual Spine, Orthopedic and Pain Management Conference. I'm currently joined by Shua Mohamadi who is the Practice Manager at Northwest Suburban Pain Associates. So Shua, thanks for being here. I would love to start us off by having you share a little bit more about yourself, your role and your organization.

[C]

Hi Grace, it's definitely very nice to be here. I've come to this conference every year in the last three years I think, and it's always great to be here and thank you for giving me the opportunity. So, as you already introduced me, I'm the Practice Manager for Northwest Suburban Pain Associates. My role at my practice is basically overseeing financial management, practice management, clinically as well as administratively.

[B]

Wonderful. Well, thank you for being here to share your insights and let's start our conversation off with what trends or shifts you're currently seeing in the industry right now that you think are most important for industry leaders to pay attention to.

[C]

Right now. Something that just immediately pops up in my mind with regards to what we are seeing in shifting trends would be the amount of influence insurances have on the treatment that physicians have to offer. I think there is a lot of need for shifting towards requirements and compliance as well as prior authorization processes, documentation requirements by insurances. That is causing a big shift in how the dynamic of a practice would work on or look like on a daily basis, day to day basis. The other main focus that we have been looking into as pain management physicians is regenerative medicine. So that has been on the rise and it's not covered by insurance. So we have been able to market it very successfully to our pool of patients and elsewhere as well. But the downside to that would be the self pay attached to it because that would not be covered by their insurance plans. So those are the two major shifts that I would like to focus on.

[B]

Absolutely. And staffing and workforce challenges also continue to be A concern across healthcare. So how is your organization navigating these pressures and what strategies have you seen work?

[C]

Well, well, with staffing, the only solution that comes to mind, and it has worked, is retention, staff retention. Because right now, if you go to replace a good candidate at work, I feel the market is severely lacking good personnel. And also one of the reason being that practices like myself, businesses like ours, we have focused our best in retaining the best employees and the workforce. That, I think that would be the. That is one of the major challenges everybody feels across the board. And we have felt it too. And we try our best to navigate it as the best we could. The other workforce challenges would be in terms of, like I stressed on before, insurance requirements and documentation requirements to meet medical necessity for certain procedures. I feel that that gives rise to the necessity to get a compliance team on board as well as to get a prior authorization department set up that would handle approvals, that would handle, you know, the cost questions with patients as well the documentation requirements and continuous and ongoing workforce training for that purpose.

[B]

Absolutely. And then as outpatient care continues to grow, how do you see the role of orthopedics, spine and ASCs evolving with the broader healthcare ecosystem?

[C]

I feel no matter where any health organization reaches out to, the bottom line is always how satisfied your customer is and your customer is a patient. And I feel that from my perspective, when I talk to patients for feedback or I cross reference a lot of the feedback that I get with my workforce and physicians, I think the most important thing that patients are looking for, I'm coming from pain management, so I'm going to speak on behalf of that obviously is that they want to be seen as soon as possible. You cannot have a patient in pain wait for three months to be seen. You cannot have a patient in pain even wait more than a week to be seen. So that also adds to the previous question of the workforce. Challenges we are facing is that we need to be adequately equipped in order to make sure we are there for the patients.

[B]

Absolutely. And that's a great segue into my final question. Many organizations are exploring new technologies, partnerships and care models to improve efficiency and outcomes. So are there any innovations or initiatives you found particularly promising here?

[C]

I think we developed our billing department and the financial system a little bit, little more better over the course of the last, particularly the last two years because we've grown extensively in self pay procedures as well as region of medicine for the clinic. And we cover spine, we cover joints, we cover practically every part of the body. With that being said, I feel that the most important, I wouldn't call it a new technology, but obviously you need again, a proper work ethic and flow in place. You have to have a good billing department that offers all the ideas there are. We do use CareCredit, by the way, and we do offer that to patients when, if they need to do that, if they need to use it. So all I will say is that, yes, a good work ethic in place, a good workflow in place, a proper documentation in place, and yes, workforce wise, you have to have that kind of backup. You cannot do this without workforce or you cannot have AI do this. Definitely. So, yes, in terms of new technologies and partnerships, I think we are partnering with affiliates like RegenX, we are partnering with multiple referring sources that send us patients. So it's just that you have to grow with the flow and just make sure that you have the proper financial options for patients so that they can, they can receive the treatment that they deserve.

[B]

Absolutely. Well, Shu, is there anything else you'd like to add as we round out our conversation today?

[C]

No, I just. The only thing that I would wrap this up with is saying that ultimately I know that we have a responsibility to go financially, but I think the more an organization grows is when the patients are happy and they receive the care that they deserve. Obviously, within reasonable means and within reasonable resources, I think that organizations should continue to equip themselves in order to meet these requirements.

[B]

Absolutely. Well, thank you so much for taking the time to join me today. Again, we are recording live at the 22nd annual Spine, Orthopedic and Pain Management Conference.