Dr Richard
Parkinson

Neurosurgeon & Minimally Invasive Spine Surgeon

Dr Richard Parkinson is a Fellowship-trained neuro-interventional neurosurgeon, and minimally invasive spine surgeon.

He has been performing minimally invasive and complex spinal surgery for 20+ years and has built his reputation on his conservative approach to surgery.

Dr Parkinson was the first neurosurgeon in Australia to be trained in percutaneous spine surgery (endoscopic / keyhole spine surgery, commonly referred to as “ultra minimally invasive spine surgery”), same-day microdiscectomy (microdecompression) surgery, and brain aneurysm treatments.

He is passionate about the long-term reduction of pain and improved function for patients following spine surgery, which he achieves through a focus on impeccable surgical skills developed over a lengthy career, as well as a focus on post-surgical rehabilitation.

Dr Parkinson is committed to ongoing training and development, as well as embracing new operative technologies that assist neurosurgeons to reduce variability when operating, which help to increase the reproducibility of surgical outcomes for patients.

Qualifications

Training & Fellowships

Academic Appointments

Memberships

Registrations

Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago, USA

Dr Richard Parkinson completed his neurosurgery training in Sydney, achieving Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS) as a Consultant Neurosurgeon.

He was then accepted into a training placement in the USA, where he undertook a sub-specialised spine surgery training fellowship at the prestigious Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago – a leading high-volume spinal surgery centre of excellence – which he completed under the guidance of internationally recognised luminary neurosurgeons; Professor Richard Fessler and Professor Hunt Batjer.

During his time training in the USA, Dr Parkinson was exposed to a wide range of clinical presentations and advanced technologies, such as endoscopic spine surgery, which he brought back to his clinic in Australia.

My aim is to keep developing new surgical techniques, founded in the latest scientific evidence, that improve the surgical outcomes and quality of life for my patients.

Areas of Expertise

Committed to Training & Surgical Skill Development

Dr Parkinson was the first neurosurgeon in Australia to be trained in neuro-intervention, including:

He routinely performs percutaneous (endoscopic) spinal fusion surgery and has one of the largest series of patients of any neurosurgeon in Australia.

Stem Cell Transplant

While in the USA in 2011, Dr Parkinson assisted Professor Rick Fessler in the second-ever, direct spinal cord stem cell transplant, which was performed at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago.

NuVasive Pulse 3D

In 2022, Dr Parkinson undertook training on the revolutionary NuVasive Pulse 3D spine surgery platform, which is available at St Vincent’s Private Hospital Sydney (the only location in Australia offering the platform).

The Pulse 3D platform combines a range of operating theatre technologies, such as “smart imaging” (reduced radiation) with 3D-image rendering software, robotic navigation instrument guidance arrays and integrated neuromonitoring, which when combined, enables neurosurgeons to perform spine surgery more accurately and importantly, with significantly reduced radiation exposure for the patient vs. normal spine surgery performed elsewhere.

Have a question about your condition or wish to book an appointment?

Please get in touch with our reception team if you have a general enquiry for Dr Parkinson, or your would like to book an appointment.