Their Administrative Error, my billing nightmare.
I’ve been a patient at Pain Physicians of Wisconsin and have had an extremely frustrating experience with their billing and communication. Over roughly three months, I made about 25 phone calls trying to resolve a clear billing error that resulted from their own administrative mistake.
Each time I called, I was told someone would get back to me, but almost no one ever did. I repeatedly asked for the email addresses or phone numbers of the individuals responsible so I could communicate directly, but was told that information could not be shared. That made it nearly impossible to get any traction or accountability.
The front-line staff were polite, but the overall system feels broken — overly compartmentalized and unresponsive. For a medical practice that handles ongoing patient care, this lack of follow-up and transparency is unacceptable.
I hope management takes this seriously. Patients shouldn’t have to make dozens of calls to fix an error that originated within the clinic. Clear communication and ownership of mistakes would go a long way toward restoring trust.
Date of experience: 25 September, 2025
My experience with Pain Physicians of Wisconsin has been wonderful! Kim Litwack has been nothing but kind, caring, and empathetic as to my chronic pain condition and how it’s affecting my life. She REALLY listens to me and talks to me even about what’s going on in my personal life with my family. I usually end up crying at pretty much every visit, and she always gives me a long hug before I leave. She’s been a great pain provider for me by listening to me and how I’m being affected, and also taking my suggestions about pain control into consideration. I would recommend her to anyone dealing with significant pain that needs help in managing it!! Edit: Things DID start out going really well with her. However, unfortunately, things ended up going really really aweful. I ended up with serotonin syndrome, because she didn’t have the complete records of my medications, such as the dosages that I was on. So I was on a very high dosage of an antidepressant, along with taking pain medication 4 times a day. (This is all because the previous place went bankrupt, and now Advanced Pain Management had the rest of my medical records, which failed to transfer over to Kim’s office.) I have an EXTREMELY painful medical condition called Adhesive Arachnoiditis. With the Serotonin Syndrome, my blood pressure was very high, I was tachycardic, I was constantly having muscle spasms, I couldn’t get my words out straight, I was extremely irritable, and it was like my chronic pain on steroids! This lasted for MANY months on end. I’d call them and call them and report my symptoms to them, but they either wouldn’t take me seriously, or would tell me to go to the ER. But the ER would never do anything for me. I had already tried that before. It took ME figuring out over time what was going on between the two medications. I even asked her at my last appointment: “Is it ok to take this med and this med together?” She goes: “Oh yes, it’s perfectly fine!” 🤦🏽♀️Well, I don’t think she ever looked up the interactions, because when I did, it said: “Major: Using these together can increase the risk of a rare but serious condition called Serotonin Syndrome.” I was at the max dose of my antidepressant. So it’s no wonder that happened to me while also being on the pain med at the same time. So, since I was in such horrendous pain, what did they decide to do? Increase my dose of pain medication. 😤When that’s not what needed to happen. Although at that time, I still didn’t know what was going on with me. Plus, when she gave me the extended release version of the new pain med, she didn’t give me instructions for stopping the old one and starting the new one. I eventually had to figure out that I needed to get off of my antidepressant with the help of my Psychiatrist. After I did that, guess what? My pain medication worked SO much better for me, and I was no longer having the Serotonin Syndrome effects. In the end, I left Kim, and now I’m just with my PCP. I’m using LDN to manage my pain, along with other therapies. I truly hope that they have things put together a lot better than they did when I was going there. Because that was a HUGE patient safety risk, and I told Kim that on my last visit with her!
Thank you Amelia! We appreciate you taking the time to review PPWHealth and share your experience with Kim Litwack!
Roger Hessling2024.03.06
I would like to thank everyone at Pro Spine & Pain Clinic. From the appointment makers to Dr. Aasen and his crew, and everyone in between. They are personal, very caring, professional, and compassionate. The procedures they do are awesome. I would recommend anybody to go to this clinic!!!
Thank you so much for your kind words and recommendation! We're thrilled to hear that your experience at Pro Spine & Pain in Madison was so positive. Our entire team, from the appointment schedulers to Dr. Aasen and his staff, is committed to providing compassionate, professional care. We're glad the procedures have been helpful. If you're looking for a trusted spine and pain clinic near you, we're here to help! Your recommendation means the world to us, and we’re honored to have earned your trust!
Glenda Wyatt (Monster's Mom)2024.01.16
I was seen quickly.
The staff and the Nurse Practitioner I met with, were particularly understanding and gave me adequate time to explain my situation.
I found them to be very helpful and willing to help with my questions.
I'll be going back for a follow up in 2 weeks.
I'm really looking forward to working with them.
Thank you for sharing your experience! We're so glad to hear that you felt well taken care of at Pro Spine & Pain in Madison, WI. Our team, including our Nurse Practitioners, strives to provide compassionate and thorough care to every patient. As the premier spine and pain group near you, we are dedicated to giving each patient the time and attention they need to feel heard and supported. We're looking forward to seeing you at your follow-up appointment and continuing to work with you on your health journey. If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to reach out!
Kathleen McBrair2023.11.30
I went to a new pain clinic today, and I met with my new doctor, face-to-face. He examined me, spoke with me and prescribed treatment that should have been undertaken before my first SCS. He addressed my months-long elevated pain and need for more than begging for a Tylenol 3, like I’m some heroin addict looking for recreation. And I don’t know what lab the clinic Pro Spine uses, but they need to clean up their act. I tested positive for morphine, which has been on my allergy list for 30 years. That should have been a huge red flag as to the test validity.
To top their performance, as a reaction to my elevated pain, they prescribed Tramadol/Ultram, another medication that has been on my allergy list for 30 years.
After pointing out this bad prescription, they “fired” me as a patient, citing too much contact. If you can’t call your pain doctor four times in a week (because they’re not calling you back), there are bigger issues at play.
I was in the ER twice in a week, but Pro Spine sat on their hands. They finally went totally crazy and gave me a steroid pack after the second ER visit. They wanted me to travel two hours (one way) to relinquish the wimpy T3s and prove pill count so I could get the prescription on my allergy list. And now I’m also facing another surgery to replace the SCS they recommended. Bad support for the SCS, but also nearly impossible to charge. I’m on a fast-track to bankruptcy thanks to “providers” like Pro Spine because I need to get back to work, not guinea-pig at their leisure while I can’t even meet with a doctor.
Quite possibly the most incompetent “specialists,” given that my pain has increased and gone unaddressed under their care.
Finally, if a certain doctor has had issues with opioid prescriptions in the past (yes) then he may need to change his shingle. But a pain practice that can’t relieve pain; and a pain practice that blocks patients from their own doctors is hugely problematic.
Thank you for firing me as a patient so I could move forward. I’m not so appreciative of the six months of torture.
I've been coming to PSP for many years now. I started when they were Advanced Pain management and will always continue. The nurses are so nice. My PA Kim and Kelsey listen and are very in tune to what I need. Appointment's are easy to get. I know a lot of people might be thinking ugh, not a PA. Don't worry on this. You'll see a doctor too. He's nice.
Hi Christina. Sorry to hear of the experience you had. We'll be reaching out to you to learn how we can improve. Thank you for making us aware of your experience.
Hi Irene. Thank you for the review and your comments. We hope to be able to expand our services and locations in the future.
bwestman2022.08.24
Dr Mark Assen nailed it it has only been a day since I had the procedure done to block the pain in my back and I already feel better. I can't wait to go back on Sept 2nd for the right side. I had this same procedure done at UW last year and I am not ever going back to UW ever. Dr Assen knows what he is doing and Omgosh the cute nurse Kate is a top notch nurse she is caring and listens to the concerns that you have I don't remember the other names one nurse is from Texas and we talked about Texas since I might move down there soon. I am going to tell.y Dr at the VA that they need to refer more veterans to this client. I gave this clinic 5 stars...
Hi Ms Sam. Sorry to hear about this. Our clinic is closed on Wednesday but we don't schedule appointment on Wednesday. This may have been a miscommunication on your appointment date. Please call our office at 262-297-7246 when you have a chance. Thank you for letting us know!
Thank you for the great review! We are so happy to hear that you were satisfied with your experience at our office. We hope to see you soon again :)
Susan King2021.05.28
I only wish it was possible to give minus stars for this horrible place. I got stuck with the most unprofessional uncaring creature in the world. She had me on the lowest dose of the wrong medication for over a year. Every time I tried talking to her about how much terrible pain I was in....crying all the time, not being able to do anything she showed no compassion even telling me if I kept crying when talking to her or asking her to put me back on what worked better she would drop me. Every time I had to talk to her on the phone I would cry uncontrollably for anywhere from three to eight hours. She even admitted she would rather see me suffer than put me back on what worked. I had asked about seeing one of the new providers but she told me she already talked to them so it would not do me any good. I have never in my life seen anyone so very cruel and unfeeling. If you get stuck with Kim Litwack I truly pity you.
Thank you for your feedback. We are sorry you had a negative experience at our office. We take feedback like yours seriously and we are going to look further into this so that we can work towards making you a happy customer. Thanks!
Hello Candi, thank you for the rating, we appreciate your business.
Richard Shear2021.05.03
After treatment from Advanced pain treatment, there was relief right away in my neck! Huge improvement thanks to them. I would highly recommend them.
R Shear
Verified Company
