Q&A: Matthew Barfield, DO

Matthew Barfield, D.O. earned his medical degree from the University of North Texas Health Sciences Center in Fort Worth and is board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Pain Medicine. He is skilled in a variety of minimally invasive interventional pain management therapies.

Q: What drew you to the field of pain management and/or anesthesiology?

A: I find it extremely rewarding to help my patients by identifying their unique pain generators so that I can target those painful structures through direct interventional therapies that improve function.

Q: Is there a particular treatment or technology on the horizon that has you excited about the future of pain management and opportunities to help your patients?

A: The field of pain management is transforming almost daily due to continued advances in minimally invasive therapies such asradiofrequency ablation, neuromodulation and intradiscal therapies. These treatments enable our patients to get the pain relief they seek without major surgical interventions and lengthy rehabilitation.

Q: What gets you excited about working at NSPC?

A: I am happy to be part of a larger group of experts in pain management who work together to stay on the cusp of emerging therapeutics that help address chronic and acute pain.

Q: What do you enjoy the most about your job? What drives you to do it?

A: I appreciate the opportunities I have to get to know my patients well so that I can help them identify the cause of their pain and direct treatments to that cause.

Q: What do you like to do in your free time (hobbies, interests, etc.)

A: My faith and family are what I focus on in my free time. I enjoy teaching children’s religious education, leading a Boy Scout troop, and camping and hiking with my family.

Q: What would you do for a living if you weren’t a doctor?

A: I would organize religious pilgrimages for families and churches.

Q: What is your philosophy about doctor-patient interaction and patient-centered care?

A: It is all about the patient. The patient is the one suffering with pain. They put trust in their physician to help identify the cause and best treatment while keeping their safety in mind at all times.