Norwich — Backus Hospital leaders are working to hire a replacement for the doctor at a hospital pain management clinic on Salem Turnpike, but a nationwide shortage of pain specialists could mean a delay.

Dr. Edward Hargus, the primary physician at the clinic, retired recently, leaving the 150-patient Backus Pain Management & Palliative Care Services center without a permanent doctor.

A temporary physician, Dr. Azra Khan Salahuddin, has taken over all patients' prescribing and appointments. The hospital is actively working to hire a permanent replacement to run the clinic, but pain management experts, and especially those who are willing to move to Norwich, are few and far between, hospital officials said.

Shawn Mawhiney, a spokesman for Backus parent company Hartford Health Care, said patients are being advised to seek out other pain clinics in the area and contact their primary care doctors, in case there is a significant delay or a gap in leadership at the clinic.

"We are doing everything we can to ensure there isn't a gap in coverage," Mawhiney said in an email. "But again finding the right replacement takes time."

More than 150 patients go to the clinic for treatment for pain caused by cancer, back injuries, nerve damage or a variety of other ailments, said Dr. Nader Bahadory, Backus' medical director.

The physician running the clinic should have completed a pain-focused fellowship following their residency, Bahadory said, though finding someone with adequate training willing to move to Norwich likely will pose a challenge.

"We're actively looking and we're interviewing folks," he said. But "the candidates are few and far between."

The uncertainty might be hard on patients who have long relied on their relationship with Hargus, he said.

"He was in practice for years," Bahadory said. "He's an established doctor ... Just like anything else, the patients get anxious because they're worried about where they're going to get their care," he said.

While the number of doctors completing two-year pain fellowships has not yet caught up to the demand from patients with all kinds of pain management needs, Bahadory said he's optimistic that the imbalance will equal out. 

"The market's going to work its magic at some point, there will be need and there will be more physicians trained," he said. "It's just going to take time."

In the meantime, he said, Backus staff planned to interview a candidate for the position at the head of the clinic this week, he said.

But, he said, anyone who has completed the training at one of the few pain fellowship programs in the country will be in high demand.

"There are not that many out there," he said. "Everyone is looking for such candidates."

m.shanahan@theday.com