Assist. Prof. M.D. Meltem Açıl

As an 82-year-old with chronic osteoarthritis pain that made knitting impossible, I was skeptical about another pain specialist. Dr. Meltem Açıl didn't just adjust my medication; she introduced me to a gentle aquatic therapy program at the hospital's rehabilitation pool. Her approach was like a grandmother's care mixed with scientific precision—she even showed me diagrams of how water buoyancy reduces joint pressure. For the first time in years, I slept through the night without pain waking me. My follow-up visits feel like catching up with a brilliant niece who happens to know everything about nerve pathways.

Our 9-year-old daughter developed complex regional pain syndrome after a playground fracture, screaming at the lightest touch. Every doctor seemed intimidated by her case until Dr. Açıl. She transformed her examination room into a 'space station,' using colorful thermal imaging to show my daughter her 'pain galaxy' and teaching her to 'send cool rockets' to those areas through guided imagery. She prescribed a pediatric pain psychologist alongside minimally invasive sympathetic nerve blocks. The treatment wasn't just medical; it was an imaginative journey where my child became the hero of her own recovery. We drive three hours to Adana Ortopedia because no one else speaks the language of scared children.

I arrived at the emergency department at 2 AM with a searing sciatic pain so severe I couldn't sit or stand—just lay twisted on the floor. Dr. Açıl was on call and performed an emergency caudal epidural injection with ultrasound guidance right there in the ER bay. What stunned me was how she explained each step through my panic: 'Now you'll feel cold antiseptic, like mint on your skin... now pressure, like someone pressing a thumb gently.' Her emergency intervention wasn't just technically brilliant; it felt profoundly human. She followed up personally for three days, adjusting my oral medications until the acute crisis passed. Most ER doctors patch you up and discharge you; she initiated a comprehensive pain map strategy I still use.

After two failed spinal fusions left me with arachnoiditis and opioid dependency, I was a walking complex case file. Dr. Açıl spent our first 90-minute consultation dismantling my 'failed patient' narrative. She created a mosaic treatment: pulsed radiofrequency ablation for nerve roots, a carefully monitored opioid taper using buprenorphine, and an unconventional referral to a music therapist who uses low-frequency sound vibration. She coordinates with my neurologist, psychiatrist, and physiotherapist in a shared digital log I can access. For the first time, my pain management feels like an orchestra where Dr. Açıl is the conductor—every instrument has its place, and the music is finally becoming bearable.