Dr. Catherine Y. Choi

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• Chronic pain and opiate management.

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Get to know Physiatrist Dr. Catherine Choi, who serves patients throughout the State of Minnesota.

Being a board-certified physiatrist, Dr. Choi provides back, neck and spine care at Summit Orthopedics in Minneapolis / St. Paul, Minnesota. Her areas of expertise include physical medicine & rehabilitation and interventional pain management procedures, including spinal injections.

“My philosophy in treating my patient is to provide personalized spine education,  review comprehensive treatment options, and work together in determining the best path for you.” as stated by the doctor.

Summit Orthopedics was founded with the vision to bring comprehensive orthopedic care to the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area, as well as the Greater Minnesota and Wisconsin communities. As a group of physicians grounded in orthopedic expertise, Summit provides comprehensive bone, joint, and muscle care with nonsurgical and innovative surgical treatment options.

Honored as a Rising Star in Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Dr. Choi’s practice reflects her training in both physical medicine and pain management. Looking at every day as an opportunity to meet new people and understand different aspects of others’ lives, she takes a comprehensive approach in working with her patients to address their physical problems. She provides educated insight, works with them to understand what is causing the problem, and then helps fix it by guiding them towards available options, from conservative treatments to surgery. 

Attributing her first steps toward medicine to rebel teen tendencies and a love of science, Dr. Choi earned her medical degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She then went on to complete her internship in internal medicine at West Suburban Hospital, followed by her residency in physical medicine & rehabilitation at Schwab Rehabilitation Hospital. She also completed her fellowship in interventional pain management within the Department of Anesthesia & Critical Care at the University of Chicago. 

“And as I was traveling through the course of medical school and residency, trying to figure out what I wanted to be and do – my sisters and I, we always grew up doing crafts and arts and we were always doing little meticulous things with our hands. And I really like using my hands to have some sort of an outcome. And that’s kind of what led me into pain management. Because in pain management, I get the chance to do procedures that offer patients immediate relief. And that was somewhat gratifying for me.” as stated by Dr. Choi.

She is board-certified in physical medicine & rehabilitation and pain medicine through the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, which was established in 1947 as the certifying body for the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation under the American Board of Medical Specialties. 

Additionally, she is a member of several professional organizations, including the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians, the Spine Injection Society, the North American Spine Society, and the American Academy of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation.

Physical medicine and rehabilitation, also known as physiatry and physiatrics, is a branch of medicine that aims to enhance and restore functional ability and quality of life to those with physical impairments or disabilities. Physiatrists treat a wide variety of medical conditions affecting the brain, spinal cord, nerves, bones, joints, ligaments, muscles, and tendons. 

“Sometimes, the best medicine is just to listen and allow each patient to be heard. My time with my patients is limited, but I try to get to a deeper level of conversation. I want to know how the problem is really affecting my patient. Even when I can’t completely eliminate pain, allowing my patients to be heard builds the trust everyone wants with a doctor.” as stated by Dr. Choi.

Outside of the office, she enjoys doing yoga, running, participating in athletic races, knitting, baking, as well as jewelry and invitation making. 

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