Does it makes sense that i can only see a pain doctor once a year? the other times i need to see the nurse practitioner. never heard of this.

Could be: The current medical trend is incorporation of np more. Talk with them if you feel you need other issues addressed by physician.

No: Whay to see pain doctor only once a year......If you have stable and controlled pain then just see your pcp. I am sure insurance company also agrees with me!

Sometimes: In some pain practices the md does the initial evaluation and when a patient is fairly stable an np will do follow-up visits. The np should refer new questions or issues back to the physician who should be available on premises.