Spine Surgery at Covenant Health

Covenant Health is home to the region’s only spine surgery network, with three Spine Centers located at Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center, Methodist Medical Center and Parkwest Medical Center. Our multidisciplinary team includes neurosurgeons, orthopedic surgeons, nurses, physical therapists and occupational therapists.

Covenant Health physicians use the latest technology and treatment methods for inpatient and outpatient surgeries, including minimally invasive surgery techniques that result in faster recoveries, less postoperative pain and fewer complications. Our goal is for you to get back to doing the activities you love as quickly as possible.

Our Spine Centers perform more than 2,000 elective spine surgeries each year, and 95% of our elective spine surgery patients go directly home after surgery. 

Spine Health Information Resources 

Patient Education for Surgery

Patient Testimonials

Spine Education Videos

Health Information Library

Patient Success Stories

Back in the Swim of Things

Knoxville hairstylist takes plunge for back relief.

Almost a year after Joel Norman, MD, a board-certified neurosurgeon at Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center, took all her pain away, the 67-year-old Knoxville hairstylist is literally back in the swim of things. “I try to swim daily except for Mondays,” said Maxwell, who does laps and exercises in the pool.

Powell Woman Finds Surgeon is ‘Straight Shooter’

Paul Johnson, MD, an orthopaedic surgeon at Parkwest Medical Center, walked into Anna Halliburton’s exam room carrying an MRI report and bad news.

“The first time I met him he walked in with the MRI report and said, ‘Your back is a wreck! What are we going to do about it?’” the 71-year-old Powell woman said. “I said, ‘I don’t know. You are the expert – you’ll have to tell me!’ And he did. He told me that surgery was a likely option.” He quickly found Halliburton’s problem – two deteriorating and ruptured lumbar vertebrae at L4 and L5. “He told me that we could do surgery or we could try some other treatments,” she said. 

Man Finds Relief from Hip and Back Pain with Joint Fusion Procedure

In 2001, Brian endured a fall from a six-foot ladder and his right hip took the brunt of the fall. He was in pain for several years and saw many doctors before he finally limped into the office of Lawrence Maccree, DO.

It was a painful road before he arrived. Brian estimates he underwent numerous X-rays, MRIs, physical therapy sessions, chiropractor and acupuncture visits before receiving a steroid injection into a specific joint that made a difference. Receiving a steroid injection into his sacroiliac joint revealed the source of his pain.

Covenant Health Spine Centers

All three Covenant Health Spine Centers are BlueCross BlueShield Blue Centers of Distinction+ for Spine Surgery¹.

¹Blue Distinction Centers (BDC) met overall quality measures for patient safety and outcomes, developed with input from the medical community. A Local Blue Plan may require additional criteria for providers located in its own service area; for details, contact your Local Blue Plan. Blue Distinction Centers+ (BDC+) also met cost measures that address consumers’ need for affordable healthcare. Each provider’s cost of care is evaluated using data from its Local Blue Plan. Providers in CA, ID, NY, PA, and WA may lie in two Local Blue Plans’ areas, resulting in two evaluations for cost of care; and their own Local Blue Plans decide whether one or both cost of care evaluation(s) must meet BDC+ national criteria. National criteria for BDC and BDC+ are displayed on www.bcbs.com. Individual outcomes may vary. For details on a provider’s in-network status or your own policy’s coverage, contact your Local Blue Plan and ask your provider before making an appointment. Neither Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association nor any Blue Plans are responsible for non-covered charges or other losses or damages resulting from Blue Distinction or other provider finder information or care received from Blue Distinction or other providers.