Iowa Back Institute · Work Injury Program
563-421-4370
Work injury & workers' compensation

When Iowa gets hurt at work, we get Iowa back to work.

Fellowship-trained spine surgeons, a conservative-first philosophy, and case coordination built for the people managing the claim — with a work status form in hand before the patient leaves the building.

Refer an injured worker → I was hurt at work ↓
Work status form
Same visit
Completed at every appointment — one copy to the patient, one faxed to the employer and carrier the same day.
Office notes & reports
24–48 hrs
Chart notes, restrictions, and treatment plans delivered promptly to adjusters and case managers after each visit.
Acute referrals
Seen fast
Acute injuries are triaged within 24–48 hours; routine referrals are scheduled within five to seven business days.
What we provide

Every service a spine claim needs — under one roof.

Medical evaluation & treatment
Prompt, evidence-based diagnosis and care for work-related spine injuries — from acute disc herniations and fractures to cumulative lifting injuries.
Second opinions
An outside perspective on diagnosis, surgical necessity, or a recovery that has stalled — including complex revision evaluations.
Independent medical exams (IME)
Objective, well-documented examinations with clear, defensible written reports delivered on schedule.
Impairment ratings
Ratings performed per the AMA Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment, as required under Iowa law, at maximum medical improvement.
Causation determinations
Careful analysis of mechanism, history, and imaging to address whether a condition arises out of and in the course of employment.
Work restrictions & RTW planning
Restrictions written against the worker's actual functional job description, FCE review, and staged return-to-work and transitional-duty planning.

“I was able to go back to work”

— verbatim patient survey comment, 2023 · more patient comments →
Start here

One program. Every party at the table.

Workers' compensation only works when the worker, the employer, the adjuster, and the physician are reading from the same page. Here's yours.

Injured workers
What happens now — in plain language.
How to report your injury, who chooses your doctor in Iowa, what to bring to your first visit, and what terms like MMI and impairment rating actually mean.
Read the guide →
Employers · Adjusters · Case managers · Attorneys
A partner who communicates like a partner.
Our communication commitments, what we need from you, our return-to-work philosophy, and the medico-legal services we provide.
See how we work →
Why a spine-specific program

Back injuries are the most common — and the most mismanaged — work injuries.

Overexertion from lifting, pushing, pulling, and carrying is consistently among the leading causes of workplace injury — and the low back takes the brunt of it. These are also the claims where the medical path most often goes wrong: delayed diagnosis, drifting treatment plans, surgery offered when it isn't needed, or withheld when it is.

A spine-specialized program changes the math. Conservative care is exhausted honestly before surgery is discussed. When surgery is indicated, it's performed by fellowship-trained spine surgeons whose outcomes are tracked. And every visit produces a work status document, because a claim without current restrictions is a claim going nowhere.

Complex cases — failed prior surgery, prior consultations elsewhere, stalled recoveries — receive formal case review with written treatment recommendations.

The team behind the program
  • Fellowship-trained orthopaedic spine surgeons with high-volume practices in complex and revision spine surgery
  • 144+ peer-reviewed publications from the program's medical director, including research on spine surgery outcomes and safety
  • Conservative-first philosophy — injections, therapy, and medication before any discussion of surgery
  • Experience with second opinions statewide — patients across Iowa are referred here when a recovery has gone off course
Real work-injury cases

What these claims actually look like.

De-identified imaging from work injuries treated here — including the two most people assume need surgery and don't. The full library shows the films first, then the plan.

Lumbar MRI from a work back injury treated without surgery — de-identifiedTREATED WITHOUT SURGERY
C-01
Back injury at work — no surgery needed
Twisting injury on the job, no red flags. Full duty at six weeks with therapy alone.
Open the case →
L5-S1 disc herniation from a lifting injury, resolved without surgery — de-identifiedTREATED WITHOUT SURGERY
C-02
L5-S1 herniation — resolved without surgery
Lifting injury severe enough for a hospital admission — and it still settled without an operation.
Open the case →
Post-operative standing X-ray after L1 fracture fusion from a fall at work — de-identifiedTRAUMA · SURGICAL
C-05
L1 fracture from a fall — fusion with cage
Fall from height on a scaffolding job. An unstable fracture that was a surgical injury from day one.
Open the case →
Work comp line

One number. One inbox. Real answers.

563-421-4370
Mon–Fri 8:00–5:00 · fax and coordinator contacts on the referral page
workcomp@iowaback.com
IOWA BACK INSTITUTE — WORK INJURY & WORKERS' COMPENSATION PROGRAM General education — not legal advice · © 2026