Dr. Erik Shaw, DO

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Get to know Physiatrist Dr. Erik Shaw, who serves patients in Atlanta, Georgia.

A board-certified physiatrist, Dr. Shaw is the Medical Director of the Shepherd Spine and Pain Institute in Atlanta, Georgia. His primary focus is improving quality of life through a multidisciplinary holistic approach to the practice of medicine and the application of interventional treatment for the management of pain and related disorders, including degenerative disease of the spine, postoperative spine pain, arthritis, spinal cord injury and various neurological disorders. He applies several modalities, including interventional procedures, such as epidural steroid and spine and extremity injections, physical therapy, biofeedback, and counseling.

The staff at Shepherd Spine and Pain Institute provide a multi-disciplinary approach to treatment. They are a dedicated team of interventional and rehabilitation physiatrists, nurse practitioner, nursing staff, psychologists, physical therapist and case managers all working together in a supportive, compassionate environment. They specialize in the evaluation, diagnosis and application of interventional treatment for the management of pain and related disorders.

A Texas native, Dr. Shaw graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in biomedical engineering and obtained his medical degree at the University of North Texas Health Science Center in Fort Worth. He completed his residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation and his fellowship in pain medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.

As a testament of his continued education, the doctor is board-certified in both pain medicine & physical medicine and rehabilitation from the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (ABPMR). The ABPMR is an organization that provides board certification to qualified Physicians who specialize in the treatment of patients with physical impairments or disabilities.

Continuously advancing his efforts, he is an active member of the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians, the Spine Injection Society, and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, and North American Neuromodulation Society.. He is active in research and has written and illustrated several book chapters and articles on pain management.

Before becoming a physician, Dr. Shaw worked in Moscow and Houston as a Mission Support Scientist for the Shuttle-Mir Space Program. Currently, he serves as the Chair of AAPM&R Opioid Task Force, Chair-elect of AAPM&R Pain Council, member of AMA Pain Care Task Force, Vice President of Greater Atlanta Pain Society, Reviewer At-Large for Neuromodulation, and is past Chairman of Shepherd Center’s Peer Review Committee and past Vice Chair of Communications of AAPM&R’s Pain Council.

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. 

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