Dr. John Shin, MD

I had complex scoliosis and Dr. Shin worked on me for 2 days to get it right. I spent years in pain and could not stand or walk. Other surgeons in the area told me it was inoperable. Another surgeon I saw at MGH looked scared. Before surgery I felt so hopeless until I met him. When I met him, he was already running late but he spent an entire hour with me and my family! His entire team helped me through the recovery and I feel so much better now. Can’t thank him and his team enough for his thoughtful care.

It took a while to get in to see him but it was worth it. Dr. Shin is a gem. Tip: try to get in to see his nurse practitioner Kristina. She is incredibly detail oriented and will fast track you straight to Dr. Shin

I am more than 2 years out from surgery and want to share how thrilled I have been since surgery. Pain free! Dr. Shin is awesome and a technical master. He saw things in my MRI that other surgeons did not see. He was the only surgery that got xrays and saw that I had a scoliosis in addition to my stenosis. I was set to have surgery at another Boston top hospital and friends told me I had to see him as apparently he is the go to guy at the MGH. His staff is great, especially Kristina and I would send other friends and family to them.

Dr. Shin spent all day fixing my low back. I had operations done at other hospitals and no one else at MGH would even see me for an evaluation. How ridiculous is that? I tried to get an appointment with other surgeons there but was simply turned away without reason. Dr. Shin met with me and spent more than an hour on more than one occasion to review my films with me and discuss all the options available. It was very confusing at first, but he went through different surgeries and made sure that I had family with me in the office so that everyone could be part of the talks. He eventually spent all day working to fix my back and after a year, I am so glad he did. I could barely use my legs when I first met him and now I am walking, playing golf, and have no pain. None! He is intense and it shows. He even saw me on the weekend. I agree with other posters here that he is a great guy - confident, approachable, and easy to talk to.

Makes you feel very comfortable. Great guy, great staff (especially Kristina). Extremely confident with no arrogance at all. Though very busy, acts as though you are the only patient he has. Corpectomy done with acdf. More intensive than originally thought. Pretty serious compression on cord. His response was 'it's bad, I'm saying I'm going to go in and fix it'. And he did. He had me right there. My anxiety level dropped almost completely. Have had 3 previous straight forward acdf at other facilities. Dr Shin is the only doctor I would ever go to again. Hospital staff, nurses, room...everything was well beyond expectations.

I suffered from back and leg pain for years and tried everything you can imagine to get better. I finally decided to have surgery and am glad I did. Dr. Shin performed a spinal fusion on me and I have absolutely no leg pain now. I feel like I have my life back. I can run, play golf, and exercise without any pain. Surgery is a hard recovery but Dr. Shin made me feel at ease. He is easy to talk to and when you meet with him, you know he is really paying attention to you. I met with other surgeons in Boston before deciding on him and I am glad I did. He is very thorough in explaining what is wrong and he really goes into detail. I especially appreciate that he met with my family after surgery and made the effort to see me every day in the hospital.

Dr. Shin treated me for a very complex cervical spine issue that many surgeons, both orthopedic and neurosurgeons passed on and refused to even consider surgery. My condition was getting so bad that I could hardly keep my head up and I was having worse weakness in my hands and arms. We were so nervous about such a major surgery but Dr. Shin and his staff got us through the surgery and recovery. He has an excellent staff who are responsive way beyond what we have experienced in other medical offices. Also, MGH is an incredible hospital and we had an incredible experience there. The nursing especially was outstanding and they provided the best environment to heal and recover. It has been more than 2 years since my operation and it is always a pleasure to visit with Dr. Shin as it is clear he really cares. I have had other surgeries where surgeons wouldnt even see me afterwards in the hospital. MGH is a big place with a lot of residents, students, and fellows, but it is clear he is… involved in every aspect of your care.