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Pain Clinic

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The Pain Clinic provides outpatient care for pain management.

Services provided

Services

  • Pain management
  • Medication management – non-opioid

Interventional services/medical management

Our goal is to enable changes in chronic pain sufferers so they can improve overall functioning and quality of life.  We provide management for chronic non-malignant pain conditions. This includes:

  • Epidural injection – lumbar, thoracic, cervical
  • Nerve root block – lumbar, thoracic, cervical
  • Facet injection – lumbar, thoracic, cervical
  • Radiofrequency ablation – lumbar, thoracic, cervical
  • Peripheral joint injection
  • Peripheral nerve block
  • Pelvic pain nerve blocks
  • Lidocaine infusion
  • Headache – assessment and injections

Your healthcare team

Meet Dr. Mahesh Palanisamy, Anesthesiologist & Pain Management Specialist

Dr. Mahesh Palanisamy is an internationally-trained Anesthesiologist and Pain Management Specialist. He is the Chronic Pain Section Lead at Niagara Health. He also works at the Michael DeGroote Pain Clinic at Hamilton Health Sciences.

He has more than 14 years of experience in anesthesia and has been helping patients with chronic pain for the last nine years. During this period, he has learned a variety of approaches in treating patients. He applies the best available knowledge and incorporates evidence-based medicine in the field of pain medicine.

Dr. Palanisamy completed his medical training in India and Ireland, and his specialty training at the University of Toronto. In his practice, he manages patients in a multimodal approach – he performs radiofrequency ablation of the spine, shoulders, hips and knees, superficial abdominal plane blocks, deep intra-abdominal procedures, cancer pain, peripheral nerve blocks and intra-disc procedures. He has special interest in intervention-based pain management.

He is also involved in teaching undergraduate medical students, residents and fellows as a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology at McMaster University.

When he is not working, Dr. Palanisamy enjoys spending his evenings with his wife, two young and  active children and two energetic dogs. He is passionate about sports, has played for his school and college cricket teams, and is excited about golfing in the near future. He is thrilled to be part of the local community and looks forward to meeting the locals and helping them in their health journey to lead a pain-free life.

Clinic referrals

Physician referrals

Patients are seen by referral.

Referrals must be completed by a physician. To refer a patient to the Pain Clinic, complete the Pain Clinic Referral form and fax to 289-398-0195.

Please note, once referred, we will call you to book an appointment. Patients are seen in order of urgency, instead of first-come first-served. Patients will require transportation home as patients will not be able to drive for six to eight hours post treatment.

For urgent referrals, ordering physicians must call the Pain Clinic at 905-378-4647 x43440 on Thursday or Friday between 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. or 1 to 4 p.m. to speak directly with Dr. Palanisamy.

Preparing for your appointment

In-person appointment

  • Ensure you have your Ontario Health Card or proof of medical coverage
  • Pack all current prescription and non-prescription medications
  • Arrive 10 minutes prior to your appointment
  • Check in at the registration desk 

Virtual appointment

Follow the instructions provided in your virtual visit confirmation.

What to expect

  • Your visit may take up to an hour or more
  • Blood and other laboratory work may be required, depending on the assessment  
  • Diagnostic imaging may be required, depending on the assessment

Where to go

St. Catharines Site
Level 4 - Ambulatory Care
1200 Fourth Ave.

Open Thursday and Friday
8 a.m. to 4 p.m. except statutory holidays.

Contact information

To cancel or reschedule your appointment, please contact: Ambulatory Care Scheduling Line

P: 905-378-4647 x44758
F: 289-398-0195

Niagara Health