Spine injuries can be life altering and fatal in some cases. A great deal of perseverance and dedicated physical exercise is required to recover from spinal injuries or surgeries. One such organization that is built around the needs of spine patients is SpineMark Corporation. Headquarter in San Diego, California, the company was established in 2011. Its patient-centric, transparent, and outcome-accountable services are what set it apart from its counterparts.
The model of SpineMark’s spine centers of excellence are built around the needs of patients. The centers advocate for their patients and cater to the patients’ needs. The service protocols for patients include an integrated delivery system with a team of multispecialty providers, including personnel for diagnostic, operative, non-operative care, and holistic or conservative care modalities.
Every SpineMark center starts with the physician and surgeon champions, who recognize the need for collaboration, a facility partner, and algorithms from the least to most invasive type of care. This is based on failure along a cascading chain of modalities, team conference staffing of patients, clinical research activities, and a clinical operating committee of four or more members of the team who provide clinical oversight.
A nurse navigator and an intake coordinator are recruited to provide coordination of care and follow up. A medical “gatekeeper” is recruited to manage new and established patients through their care needs and the system itself. Outcomes data and process measures as well as transparency are the key components of SpineMark’s system for patient care.
Thought Leadership
Marcy T. Rogers, M.Ed., is the President and Chief Executive Officer of SpineMark. Rogers has built her executive career in the healthcare industry through the development of niche surgical centers of excellence fueled by innovation and clinical research. A proven leader, she has built trust and rapport with physicians, hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, and medical device manufacturers in spine, orthopedics, biologics, and interventional pain. She has dedicated over 30 years of her life to delivering results.
Through alliances, partnerships, and collaborations in the field of spinal care, Rogers is getting things done. Her destination center model integrates and aligns stakeholders in the delivery of spine services, and she has successfully demonstrated solid financial results as well as strong returns on investment for the hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, and physician groups she has managed and counseled. She has consulted and worked with over 300 hospitals and surgery centers on their musculoskeletal and neurological service lines, formation of new centers, or expanding facilities on its campuses in the US and abroad.
Through her recognitions and endeavors, Rogers has established herself as a key opinion leader in the field of spine among her clients, professional colleagues, and peers.
The Vision of SpineMark
The company strives to create a new standard of care for patients suffering from back pain. “Currently there is no standard of care and the field of spine is fragmented at best with many different providers labeling themselves as spine experts as naturopaths, chiropractors, spine surgeons, interventional pain specialists, neurologists, et al.,” says Rogers.
SpineMark is working towards building a network of dozens of sites across the US and outside the US, including in Kuwait, China, and Europe. The company works towards standardizing the treatment of patients suffering from back pain via a treatment protocol, quality service, positive outcomes, efficacy, and quality data.
The organization’s values are always focused on the least invasive, “do no harm” approach to treating patients. This starts with 4-6 weeks of conservative care, which includes interventional pain procedures to minimally invasive spine surgery. These are the first choices if supported by the patient’s condition. “We want the patient to have the right procedure at the right time by the right doctor(s). That is our mantra,” asserts Rogers.
Distinctive Services and Solutions
SpineMark is the premier global spine service company for the development of Spine Destination Centers and Spine Research Organizations in partnership with medical professionals, hospitals, and industry medical manufacturers. Its centers provide excellent medical, operative, non-operative, and ancillar services, all delivered under one integrated delivery system. This reduces patient chaos, cost, and duplication of procedures.
The establishment of clinical research units at each site, as well as mainstreaming minimally invasive spine surgery procedures at numerous sites of the organization, is the most distinct feature of its service. The company’s model is built on disease-based medical management and is measured for quality.
Communication is the key to success, believes Rogers. Thanks to the use of a nurse navigator and intake coordinator, patients never fall through the cracks. Speaking about the nurse navigator support system, Rogers says, “We support patients through our services, model, management of their distinct needs throughout the course of treatment by using nurse navigators to guide them through various phases of care.” SpineMark also often links new patients with existing patients who have been treated by its team and have similar pretreatment or surgical issues. Hence, its post-operative patients are the greatest advocates for proving SpineMark’s model.
SpineMark holds itself accountable through outcomes and quality data collection, transparency, and a focused approach on the identification of the somatic origin of the pain. Diagnosis is key; surgery is always the last resort.
Bright Future for SpineMark
“We are looking to expand our sites throughout the US and abroad, with centers locally, regionally, and nationally,” says Rogers. There are 1.8 billion people disabled by back pain. The company wants to be a resource to as many of these patients as possible.
Advancement in Spine Treatment
“The new development in spine treatment has been ‘through clinical research’,” asserts Rogers. Minimally invasive spine surgery techniques are finally taking the field by storm and are becoming mainstream. “A few years ago, this was not the case,” she continues. Technological advances in robotics, instrumentation, fixation, and implants combined with cell and gene therapy biologics is changing the treatment of spinal conditions.
Today, one can perform complex spine procedures – both lumbar and cervical fusion – arthroscopically, reducing rehabilitation and recovery, and allowing patients to return to normal function in little time. Spine treatment is becoming more holistic and non-invasive with the advancement in technology. SpineMark, with its clinical research units, is making sure it keeps up with the innovation.
