E169: Dr. Ryan Budwany on Chronic Pain, Minimally Invasive Care & Restoring Function

Welcome to the Get Healthy Tampa Bay Podcast! This week, I am joined by Dr. Ryan Budwany, an interventional pain specialist and Chief Medical Officer at Pain Health. In this episode, we explore chronic pain—why so many patients feel stuck, how pain is often managed with medications instead of truly treated, and why waiting too long can lead to long-term loss of function.

Dr. Budwany shares insights into modern, minimally invasive treatment options, including image-guided procedures, diagnostic injections, and advanced technologies that target the root cause of pain rather than simply masking symptoms. We also discuss how pain impacts overall health, including movement, weight, and mental well-being.

Tune in to learn how early intervention and a more proactive approach can help patients restore function and get their lives back.

Dr. Ryan Budwany, MD, MBA, MPH, is a triple board-certified interventional pain and spine physician and Chief Medical Officer of PainHealth, based in the Tampa Bay area. He specializes in advanced, minimally invasive, non-opioid treatments focused on identifying and treating the source of pain—helping patients improve function, restore quality of life, and return to the activities that matter most.

Recognizing that pain carries both a significant personal and economic burden, Dr. Budwany leverages his background in medicine, public health, and business to develop innovative, scalable models of care that move beyond medications and focus on preventing disability. He is at the forefront of integrating artificial intelligence and medical technology into pain care—using tools like AI-driven patient education, clinical decision support, and remote monitoring to enhance outcomes and expand access to care.

Dr. Budwany works with patients locally in Tampa Bay, across Florida, and nationally, and is a recognized speaker on the future of pain care and healthcare innovation.

00:00 – Introduction and why chronic pain is often misunderstood
02:15 – Meet Dr. Ryan Budwany and his background
05:10 – Why patients delay seeking care
08:40 – Pain as a warning sign, not just a symptom
12:30 – How pain affects mood, weight, and lifestyle
16:45 – Why pain care became medication-focused
21:20 – The “fire alarm” analogy explained
25:10 – Minimally invasive spine treatments
30:05 – Diagnostic vs therapeutic injections
34:50 – Using pain relief as a window for recovery
39:10 – Transition to advanced solutions (Part 2 preview)

Connect with Dr. Budwany
Website: www.painhealth.com
Work Email: better@painhealth.com
Youtube:    / @painhealthmd 
LinkedIn:   / ryan-budwany-md-mba-mph-557a248b 

Connect with Dr. Reller
Podcast website:

Transcript

Dr. Kerry Reller:
Hi everybody, welcome back to the Get Healthy Tampa Bay Podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Kerry Reller. Today we’re talking about something that affects so many patients but often isn’t treated the way it should be—chronic pain. I’m joined by Dr. Ryan Budwany, an interventional pain specialist and Chief Medical Officer at Pain Health.

In this first part of our conversation, we’re diving into why so many patients feel stuck, why pain is often managed with medications instead of actually treated, and how delays in care can lead to long-term loss of function. If you or someone you care about has been navigating chronic pain, this is a conversation you don’t want to miss.

We’re going to split this into two episodes because we had such a great discussion. So here we go with Part 1.

Hi everybody, welcome back to the Get Healthy Tampa Bay Podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Kerry Reller, and today we have Dr. Ryan Budwany. Welcome to the podcast.

Dr. Ryan Budwany:
Hey Kerry, thank you for having me. It’s such an honor and a pleasure to join you. I’ve heard from so many of my patients that they get great benefit from listening to your podcast on a weekly or biweekly basis, so thank you for doing this for the community.

Dr. Kerry Reller:
I’m so happy to hear that—that’s the goal, to educate patients, clinicians, and the community. So thank you for sharing that.

A little bit about you—you’re an interventional pain specialist and Chief Medical Officer at Pain Health, and you’re really at the forefront of combining AI, minimally invasive procedures, and regenerative medicine to help patients move beyond masking pain and actually restoring function. I could go on and on about your background, but why don’t you tell us a little more about who you are and what you do?

Dr. Ryan Budwany:
Sure. Thank you again for having me. I’m an interventional spine and pain physician serving Southwest Florida and the Tampa Bay area. I have a unique background—I trained in Appalachia, which surprises people, but it’s actually a center for innovation in interventional pain care.

I trained under Dr. Tim Deer, who is a leader in our field, and many of the techniques we’ll discuss today were developed there. My goal is to transform how patients experience pain—not just managing it, but helping them recover and return to their functional lives.

We use a lot of technology to support that. I moved to Tampa for family, and there’s a huge need here for better access to this kind of care.

Dr. Kerry Reller:
I love that, especially what you said about access to care—we’re definitely going to talk about that.

Why do so many patients wait until pain becomes disabling before they seek advanced care?

Dr. Ryan Budwany:
Great question. I think patients often just aren’t aware of the options available. There’s a mindset that you only seek care when pain becomes severe or disabling.

But pain is actually a signal. If you’re not able to walk, cook, or work like you used to, your body is telling you something is wrong.

If you wait too long, something that could have been treated with a minimally invasive approach—like injections or physical therapy—can turn into something requiring major surgery.

Pain is like any warning sign. If you ignore chest pain or signs of diabetes, you face long-term consequences. Pain works the same way.

Dr. Kerry Reller:
That makes so much sense.

Dr. Ryan Budwany:
Pain also affects more than just your body—it impacts your entire life.

If you stop moving, you gain weight. If you stop doing activities you enjoy, your mood declines. Pain is tied to your musculoskeletal system, but it affects everything—your physical and mental health.

Dr. Kerry Reller:
That’s exactly what I was thinking. If someone can’t work out or go for a walk with their spouse, that’s going to affect mood, anxiety, and depression.

Dr. Ryan Budwany:
Absolutely. And in a place like Tampa Bay, we’re lucky to have access to nature, but if pain prevents movement, that becomes a problem.

That’s why I tell patients not to ignore early signs—address them sooner rather than later.

Dr. Kerry Reller:
Why has pain care historically been so focused on medications?

Dr. Ryan Budwany:
Because for a long time, that’s all we had.

During my training, many patients were coal miners doing physically demanding work. Their bodies broke down over time, and medications were the only option.

But medications don’t fix the problem—they mask it.

I use the analogy of a fire alarm. Turning off the alarm doesn’t put out the fire. That’s what medications do—they silence the signal but don’t solve the underlying issue.

Dr. Kerry Reller:
That’s a great analogy.

Dr. Ryan Budwany:
Now we’re in a different era. We can identify the source of pain more precisely and use minimally invasive procedures to address the root cause.

For example, with spinal stenosis, instead of just managing pain, we can open up compressed areas and relieve pressure on nerves. Many of these procedures are done through very small incisions or even through the head of a needle.

Dr. Kerry Reller:
I love how you explain injections—not just as treatment, but as diagnostic tools.

Patients will say, “the injection didn’t work,” but they don’t realize it still provides valuable information.

Dr. Ryan Budwany:
Exactly. Injections help us pinpoint where the pain is coming from.

Even if relief is temporary, it tells us we’re targeting the right area. Then we can move to longer-term solutions.

Dr. Kerry Reller:
That’s such an important point.

Dr. Ryan Budwany:
And when we reduce pain—even temporarily—it creates a window of opportunity.

That’s when patients should focus on physical therapy, posture, strength, and lifestyle changes. Pain relief isn’t the end—it’s the beginning of recovery.

Dr. Kerry Reller:
That’s a great way to frame it.

Dr. Ryan Budwany:
Exactly. We want patients to use that time to make meaningful changes that improve long-term outcomes.