If you work in or around Doral’s logistics and distribution corridor the Amazon fulfillment centers, the FedEx and UPS hubs, the freight operations running through the Miami International Airport zone you already know the physical demands. Lifting, loading, repetitive motion, long hours on concrete floors. When something gives out, the last thing you need is a doctor who documents the minimum and moves on.
What you actually need is a physician who takes the time to understand your injury completely, documents it accurately, and communicates clearly with your employer, case manager, and attorney. That documentation directly affects what your claim is worth and how your recovery plays out. A thorough treatment record is the difference between a claim that reflects your real injury and one that gets minimized at every step.
For Costa Del Sol residents commuting out via SR 836 or NW 87th Avenue every morning, the stakes are real. You have a career, a household, and an active lifestyle in one of the most well-regarded communities in Miami-Dade County. Getting back to full function not just the bare minimum is what we’re built around.
Dr. Douglas Schottenstein is double-board certified in both neurology and interventional pain management a combination held by fewer than 200 physicians in the entire country. That matters when your injury involves the spine and nervous system, because most pain management doctors are only looking at one side of the picture. Dr. Schottenstein sees both.
He completed his pain management fellowship at Columbia University/New York Presbyterian Hospital, one of the top five hospitals in the nation, and his neurology residency at Emory University. He holds a faculty appointment as an assistant professor of anesthesiology and neurosurgery at Cornell University. He has been named to the Castle Connolly and New York Magazine Best Doctors List for ten consecutive years.
We’ve been serving patients since 2008 and already work with residents across the Doral area, including communities like Doral Park and Islands of Doral that sit right alongside Costa Del Sol. We accept workers’ compensation, no-fault, Medicare, and nearly all private insurance with no out-of-pocket cost to the patient for covered care.
The first step doesn’t require a trip to New York. We offer a free MRI review you send a copy of your imaging, and a physician reviews it and gives you real feedback on what it shows. For Costa Del Sol residents who have already been seen by a carrier-selected doctor and feel like something was missed, this is a meaningful, no-risk starting point.
From there, if you move forward with treatment, every step is built around your specific injury. Florida’s workers’ compensation system gives the employer’s insurance carrier significant control over which doctor you initially see but you do have the right to request a one-time physician change. When you make that change, you want to land with someone who will conduct a thorough evaluation, not a quick one.
Our diagnostic process draws on on-site EMG and nerve conduction studies, X-rays, and referrals for MRI and CT imaging when needed. Nothing is assumed; everything is documented. Treatment follows a non-surgical-first philosophy. Every available minimally invasive option nerve blocks, epidural injections, radiofrequency treatments, physical therapy, and more is explored before any surgical recommendation is considered.
We handle all workers’ comp paperwork: injury reports, treatment plans, progress notes, return-to-work assessments, and all communication with the relevant parties. Your job is to focus on getting better. Everything else gets handled.
Ready to get started?
Back and spine injuries are among the most common and most costly workers’ comp claims in South Florida and Doral’s workforce is particularly exposed. The logistics and distribution industry that defines this area involves exactly the kinds of repetitive, high-load physical demands that produce herniated discs, nerve compression, cervical strain, and chronic musculoskeletal injury.
Add South Florida’s year-round work pace no winter slowdown, wet loading docks from afternoon thunderstorms, heat-related fatigue during summer months and the conditions for serious injury are present twelve months a year. We treat the full range of spine and pain conditions that show up in workers’ comp claims: back injuries, neck injuries, nerve damage, joint conditions, and complex pain presentations that don’t resolve on their own.
We are an authorized workers’ compensation provider, meaning treatment is covered and there are no surprise bills for the patient. The entire process from diagnosis through treatment through return-to-work planning runs through a single, experienced physician who knows your case.
For Costa Del Sol residents who commute through the I-75 and SR 836 corridors into Doral’s commercial zones, our extended hours matter. We’re open Monday through Saturday, 7 AM to 7 PM. Early morning and Saturday appointments mean you can be seen without losing a full workday which, for someone already dealing with lost income from an injury, is not a small thing.
Florida’s workers’ compensation system works differently from states like New York. In Florida, the employer’s insurance carrier generally controls which doctor you see initially they select from their authorized provider network, and you’re expected to treat with that physician. This is one of the more frustrating aspects of the Florida system, because a carrier-selected doctor is paid by the insurer, which creates an obvious tension when it comes to how thoroughly your injury gets documented.
That said, Florida law does give injured workers the right to request a one-time change of physician. If you’ve been seen by a carrier-selected provider and feel your injury isn’t being taken seriously, or that the treatment plan doesn’t match what you’re actually experiencing, that one-time change is your opening. When you exercise it, it’s worth being deliberate about where you land. Choosing a physician with specific spine and pain management credentials rather than a general practitioner can make a meaningful difference in how your injury is evaluated and what your claim ultimately reflects.
We focus on spine and pain conditions which happen to be the most common and most costly category of workers’ comp claims. Back injuries, neck injuries, herniated or bulging discs, nerve compression, radiculopathy, joint conditions, and complex chronic pain presentations are all within our scope. These are exactly the kinds of injuries that show up frequently in the logistics, warehousing, and cargo handling industries that employ a significant portion of Doral’s workforce.
We also treat injuries that don’t fit neatly into a single category situations where pain is real and persistent but prior evaluations have been inconclusive or dismissive. Dr. Schottenstein’s dual board certification in neurology and interventional pain management means he can evaluate both the structural and neurological components of an injury, which matters when you’re dealing with something that affects how you move, how you sleep, and how you function at work every day.
For accepted workers’ compensation claims, the short answer is no you should not owe anything out of pocket for medically necessary treatment. Workers’ comp in Florida operates as a no-fault system, meaning the employer’s insurance carrier is responsible for covering the cost of treatment once a claim is accepted. We are an authorized workers’ compensation provider and accept workers’ comp billing directly, so there’s no situation where you’d be handed a bill for covered care.
The billing process runs through the carrier, not through you. We handle all of that communication. What you need to focus on is making sure your injury is properly reported, your claim is filed correctly, and your treatment is documented thoroughly because gaps in documentation can create problems down the line even when the underlying injury is legitimate. That’s a significant part of what we manage on your behalf.
We offer a complimentary MRI review you send a copy of your imaging, and a physician reviews it and provides real feedback on what it shows. This is particularly useful for Costa Del Sol residents who have already been through an initial evaluation with a carrier-selected provider and aren’t sure whether the findings accurately reflect your injury. It gives you an independent, expert read on your imaging before you make any decisions about treatment or switching physicians.
It’s also a practical first step for anyone who has recently been injured and is still figuring out the process. You don’t need to travel to New York, you don’t need to commit to a treatment plan, and there’s no cost involved. You get clarity on your condition from a double-board-certified physician one of fewer than 200 in the country with that specific combination of credentials and you can make an informed decision about next steps from there.
Surgery is always the last resort that’s not a marketing position, it’s how we’re structured. Before any surgical recommendation is made, every viable non-surgical option is explored and exhausted. That includes minimally invasive interventional procedures like epidural steroid injections, transforaminal nerve blocks, facet joint injections, radiofrequency lesioning, spinal cord stimulation, and physical therapy, among others. Most patients find meaningful relief through these approaches without ever needing to consider surgery.
This matters especially for the active lifestyle that Costa Del Sol residents tend to prioritize. The community is built around outdoor living, recreational activity, and physical engagement golf course walks, fitness routines, the kind of daily movement that a long surgical recovery would disrupt for months. A non-surgical-first approach protects that lifestyle while still addressing the underlying injury at the root level. The goal is full recovery and return to function, not just symptom management.
As soon as possible and there are legal reasons for that, not just medical ones. In Florida, you’re required to report your workplace injury to your employer promptly, and delays in seeking medical treatment can create complications for your claim. Insurance carriers sometimes use gaps between the injury date and the first medical visit to argue that the injury wasn’t serious or wasn’t work-related. Getting evaluated quickly removes that argument from the table.
From a medical standpoint, early evaluation also matters because some injuries particularly spine and nerve conditions respond better to treatment when they’re addressed before inflammation and compensation patterns become entrenched. Doral’s physical work environment, including the year-round heat and the sustained physical demands of the logistics and cargo sectors, can accelerate how quickly an untreated injury compounds. If you’re unsure whether your injury is serious enough to warrant a claim, that’s exactly the kind of question a free MRI review is designed to answer without any commitment or cost on your end.
