In 2012 Courtney Cassady’s last hope was the Pediatric Pain Rehabilitation Program at Mayo Clinic.
I had a doctor come in and tell me I’d never walk again and that I’d need amputation of my leg.
That was the hardest thing that I heard through this journey.
Nearly two-years earlier Courtney broke her left ankle while practicing with her varsity basketball team.
The pain would not go away.
It kind of started with just my foot, but then it went a little. It was just mostly below my knee, you just couldn’t touch my leg, it was so painful if I bumped up against something, I would cry.
Courtney was diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), a chronic pain condition.
I tried physical therapy, occupational therapy, a chiropractor, even acupuncture.
We tried everything I was on different medications and nothing seemed to be working at all.
A doctor told Courtney she might never walk again and may need to amputate her leg.
Mayo was the best place, it was the last place, it was kind of scary also to know that I had gotten to that point, that there really wasn’t another option after Mayo.

Courtney was able to walk again after 4 ½ weeks and completing around a hundred hours of physical therapy at Mayo Clinic.
(Courtney walking down a hallway) Who is this? Who is this? It doesn’t look like the same girl anymore. It’s Courtney, yea! I can walk, yea!
Amen.
It was so, so difficult so, so difficult and I wouldn’t want to re-live it but I was one of the most rewarding things because I was able to beat the odds, the doctors who told me I couldn’t and everything and I got to show them wrong, with the support of all the staff from Mayo behind me.
(Courtney shoots a basketball) What you doing Court’?
It’s so cool because the lord has used it in ways that I cannot have even imagined. All from a simple fracture, from a basketball game.
It’s so cool because I had an end goal when I was going to through the Pain Rehabilitation Program and there’s this mission trip to New York City.
I got to meet that goal and I got to go and there’s a verse in the bible Romans 10:15 and it says how are they to preach unless they are sent. How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news. And its so cool because the Lord has been able to use my feet literally and figuratively.
Courtney credits a regular exercise regimen for helping her maintain the momentum she gained at Mayo Clinic.
I am 110% back to normal, I get to go work out, I walk to class, I’m a student at the University of Oklahoma, and I walk to class, all fine and no pain. I hang out with friends. I dance, I run around like a four miles or so. I am working up to a half marathon.
Courtney advises other young people to put their whole heart into completing the program. She is forever grateful to the people who helped her.
I love you guys, thank you for all those hard times and thank you for not giving up. Maybe if one of the people that helped me gave up on me I wouldn’t be where I am today and because of that I would like to say thank you. Thank you for all that you’ve done and all that you do for all the other patients. You’re changing lives and you don’t even know it
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A world-first transitional pain program that aims to stop pain from becoming chronic after surgery is being pioneered at Toronto General Hospital, University Health Network.

The one-year pilot program is designed to treat complex pain patients who have had surgery by helping with pain control, monitoring and weaning patients off excessive amounts of opioid medications for pain, and providing much-needed support for patients after they are discharged from the hospital. Follow-up care is provided by a diverse team of clinicians who specialize in pain control. Program specialists are not aware of any other such program in scientific publications.

Poorly controlled postsurgical pain is a risk factor for hospital re-admission and increased use of health care resources.
The program, which began in June 2014, also hopes to answer compelling questions of which risk factors cause chronic pain, what works best to stop or modify the “pain pathway” for patients, and how interventions can prevent hospital re-admissions of complex patients after surgery.

“We want to break the cycle of pain with multiple pain strategies,” says Dr. Hance Clarke, Medical Director of the Pain Research Unit and Director of The Transitional Pain Service in the Anesthesia Department and Pain Management at Toronto General Hospital (TGH). He adds that after about three months, post-surgical pain can develop into chronic pain, therefore it is important to intervene before this happens. As many as 30% of surgical patients develop chronic pain after surgery, and are at an increased risk for long-term opioid use. 50% of patients after major surgery are discharged from hospital with a prescription for opioids.

Challenging Hernias Postgraduate Course
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