Tailor-made Treatment Plans for MS

The attending board certified, fellowship-trained neurologists at the IMSMP include Saud A. Sadiq, MD, FAAN, Armistead D. Williams III, MD and James W. Stark, MD, FAAN. Each neurologist specializes in MS and cares for his patients using our Center’s philosophy, treatment plans for MS and structure, tailored to meet each individual’s needs. All of our physicians have either been recognized in publications such as New York Magazine or Castle Connolly Top Doctors® in the field of neurology. They are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to address patients’ concerns, questions and emergencies.

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic condition which will affect patients in many ways throughout every phase of their lives. Our goal of comprehensive MS care at the Center includes addressing all of these concerns. Our physicians make an individual assessment of goals based on each patient’s ability and lifestyle. They provide short-term treatment plans designed to optimize the patient’s quality of life as well as a long-term maintenance strategy. Whether you are newly diagnosed with relapsing remitting MS, have secondary progressive MS and feel that you have run out of options, or battle primary progressive MS and are concerned about the lack of modalities, our approach is to bring clarity and vision through a tailor-made management plan, addressing every aspect of a patient’s life. 

Lifelong issues include: management plans (should disease activity manifest), MS-related emergencies, discussions of issues with pregnancy, cognition, menopause, prognosis, as well as the impact on daily living. 

An Important Relationship

To help accomplish this goal, the initial visit with an MS physician at the center is split into two parts. The first time you meet your doctor, he will spend two hours with you. During this ASSESSMENT visit, he will listen to your history and symptoms and perform a full neurological examination. Your doctor may then decide to send you for additional diagnostic tests, if necessary, in order to complete your assessment. Shortly after that initial visit, you will return for a MANAGEMENT visit, in which your doctor will spend an hour and a half discussing a comprehensive plan for your care. Having a companion with you during the visits is highly recommended, especially for the second visit. This approach is designed to ensure that our patients have ample time with the doctor to address every aspect of their disease right from the initial encounter. We strive for our patients to feel they have been given as much time and attention as they require and that they are able to establish a significant relationship with their physician as soon as possible.

As a comprehensive multiple sclerosis center, we offer a variety of services and subspecialties. After your management visit, your physician may choose to refer you to other members of our highly trained staff, including physical therapy, social work, and our naturopathic doctor. In this manner, our patients are able to fully benefit from our comprehensive care team.