Watch various medical animations to learn about conditions and treatment options.
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Patients with back pain and neck problems can present a formidable challenge for the primary care physician for the diagnosis of what may be causing symptoms of radicular pain or neurological deficit symptoms like weakness in a hand or foot, and then the appropriate treatment for these symptoms.
As a regional referral center for spine problems, Dr. Craig Humphreys receives the most complex back and neck patients from across the State of Alaska. For example:
One of four patients coming in the front door have had previous back or neck surgery at other clinics. Additionally, half of new patients coming to the spine center have symptoms like radiating pain or numbness into a leg or arm, which implies disc-related symptoms, rather than simple acute back or neck strain. Another 74% of these new patients had suffered from back or neck pain for 4 months or longer.
This severity of new patients presents a challenge for a spine center. Still, the spine center emphasized non-surgical options first, holding surgery as the last resort.
If you are a primary care physician specializing in family practice, an internal medicine physician, a neurologist, rheumatologist or chiropractor who must asses back and neck pain patients, we have information that is very relevant to your patients, in that many things have evolved in the field of spine surgery over the past year that improve treatment of spine problems, including the following:
Clinical outcomes research from the North American Spine Society now clearly recommends the use of artificial discs for the cervical spine to reduce “adjacent segment disc degeneration” that occurs with spinal fusion. While cervical fusion has been the traditional option for herniated discs in the neck, it has been shown that locking vertebral segments in the neck increases the stress placed on other discs in the neck, causing other disc herniations. Because the artificial disc retains normal motion, it reduces the risk of disc herniation at adjacent levels. Dr. Craig Humphreys was one of the first centers in Alaska trained to use the Mobi-C artificial disc which was the first FDA-approved disc for one or two levels in the neck.
The new standard is to perform spine surgery through a half-inch incision using tubular retractors about the width of a ball point pen. Smaller incisions reduce blood loss and the need for outside blood; lessen pain after surgery and during recovery; and shorten the stay in the hospital. Some patients can go home the same day.
Dr. Craig Humphreys was one of the first spine specialty centers in the State of Alaska to use the advanced O-arm technology at Central Peninsula Hospital for more accurate imaging and placement of instrumentation during spine surgery.
We believe the best healthcare comes from a well-informed healthcare consumer. Consequently, Dr. Craig Humphreys provides several communication tools for physicians:
Contact our office for any of these materials for your patients and we will send them to your office for free.
Lastly, Dr. Craig Humphreys is the only spine surgeon in Alaska to be credentialed by SpineCenterNetwork.com, which is the only national network of spine centers that meet credentialing criteria. To be included, a spine center must have board-certifed spine surgeons and non-surgical specialists; spine therapists; and an emphasis on non-surgical treatment options.
Every year, Dr. Craig Humphreys contributes time and financial resources to support the Carolyn Jane Foundation a 501c(3) charitable organization. The mission of the Carolyn Jane Foundation is to bring orthopedic care to rural areas of need.
As an elementary school teacher in Anchorage, Carolyn Jane Humphreys witnessed many young people caught in tenuous situations beyond their control. She realized that school was often the only stable and safe space for children. She developed federally-funded learning programs to reach remote Alaskan village populations, and broke down cultural and literacy barriers ever present in the forgotten corners of Anchorage. Helping people for the sake of helping was ingrained in Carolyn Jane and her family without an expectation of a “thank you.”
Dr. Craig Humphreys is a big supporter of the Kenai Animal Shelter. Spine center employees volunteer at the Kenai Animal Shelter. The Dr. Craig Humphreys team helps with a number of duties at the Animal Shelter including helping care for the animals living in the shelter. This support also includes charitable donations to the animal shelter. The Kenai Animal Shelter houses dogs and cats looking for loving, forever homes. The shelter even has other animals such as rabbits, ferrets or birds.
The Foundation also provides contributions to local high school sports teams, local 10k runs and walks and other charitable groups.
Over the past eight years, Dr. Humphreys, his family and the Dr. Craig Humphreys clinical team have made several journeys to Africa on medical mission trips with the World Medical Mission organization where they volunteered to provide health care to a much-needed area of Kenya.
World Medical Mission was established in 1977 to assist surgeons who wanted to volunteer for short-term mission trips in Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe, Oceania, and the Middle East.
On a 2014 trip to Kenya, Dr. Humphreys identified a Kenyan hospital — CURE Kenya — which provided the surgical operating rooms and necessary surgical instrumentation to enable the Dr. Craig Humphreys team to perform complex spine surgery for under-served patients in Kenya, East Africa. This included complex scoliosis correction that would not otherwise be available in Kenya. While Dr. Humphreys worked with local physicians to provide medical care, his wife and children volunteered many hours of service working in the pediatric ward of the hospital providing comfort and relief to the many children admitted there.
By collaborating with CURE Kenya, Dr. Humphreys has been able to build a non-profit spine program that educates local orthopedic surgeons, while providing affordable spinal health care to those suffering from neck and back pain. The missions to CURE Kenya are ongoing and are typically performed annually.
The 2018 Mission Trip to Kenya involved the donation of medical products and equipment from multiple companies. The KenaiSpine clinical team and CURE Kijabi hospital was able to forever change the lives of 13 patients from all over Africa. Many of these individuals — ages 13 to 63 — were immobile, in great pain, with no hope. The clinical team helped to give these people back their lives.
The State Medical Board consists of five physicians, one physician assistant and two public members. Board members are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Legislature. The Board adopts regulations to carry out the laws governing the practice of medicine in Alaska. The Board is responsible for protecting the public through the licensing, regulation, and discipline of physicians, podiatrists, physician assistants, and mobile intensive care paramedics. The Board establishes and evaluates minimum education and competency standards for applicants who wish to practice medicine in Alaska. It also makes final licensing decisions and takes disciplinary action against people who violate the licensing laws. The board meets four times a year and offers a public comment period at each meeting. Meeting agendas and minutes are available from the executive administrator. The board’s Mission Statement states that its goal is to ensure that competent, professional and regulated commercial services are available to Alaska consumers.
Wouldn’t it be convenient if someone created a listing of spine centers of excellence across the United States that all emphasize non-surgical treatment options before surgery? Where the staff included board-certified spine specialists who are fellowship-trained in spine — the highest level of training available in the United States? Where centers reveal their outcomes on a Clinical Outcome Report Card? Finally, there is a free online educational resource: SpineCenterNetwork.com.
"The online network is a byproduct of one-on-one meetings with health insurance company medical directors, employers and primary care doctors who were looking for spine programs that emphasized conservative care first," explains Bob Reznik, MBA, president of Prizm Development, Inc. "Dartmouth Medical Atlas has documented tremendous treatment variation in spine care," says Reznik. "Some spine practices emphasize aggressive spine surgery too often. Other clinics can emphasize too many injections. Sadly, too many times the back pain sufferer has to travel to multiple offices for biased opinions, misleading information, fragmented care, conflicting diagnoses and treatment plans — and often an unnecessary surgery. That is the perceived problem with spine care today."
The Physician Champion Award presented by Planetree recognizes a physician who champions the Planetree model of compassionate, patient-centered care and whose actions demonstrate her or him to be a role model for other medical staff members.
Planetree, a worldwide, not-for-profit organization raising the standard of personalized healthcare by coaching organizations to inspire and enable their caregivers to transform the healthcare experience they provide. Central Peninsula Hospital has been actively engaged in implementing the Planetree model for the past 10 years, focusing on compassionate, individualized care and providing meaningful opportunities to partner with patients and families. This fall CPH was named a Planetree Designated ® Patient-Centered Hospital, making CPH one of 24 hospitals nation-wide and one of 45 internationally who have achieved this distinction.
Watch various medical animations to learn about conditions and treatment options.
View medical illustrations that help you understand pain symptoms.
Learn about special exercises and stretches that can relieve pain and help rehab muscles and joints.
Learn about minimally invasive surgery techniques that enable patients to go home the same day.
S. Craig Humphreys, MD
Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon
Fellowship-Trained Spine Surgeon