Richard N Norris, MD

Richard N Norris, MD

Not currently accepting new patients

4.588024 average rating from 167 patient reviews

Specialties

Affiliation

Mass General Brigham

Provider Locations

  • West Hatfield, MA
  • Northampton, MA

Richard N. Norris, MD, is board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (Physiatry). He is a member of the North American Spine Society (NASS) and the Spinal Intervention Society (SIS). Following completion of his residency at St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York City in 1984, Dr. Norris served a fellowship in Orthopedics at Boston Children’s Hospital and a second fellowship in Interventional Spine Medicine at the Florida Spine Institute in Clearwater in 1997. He has been in practice for 30 years and has performed over 15,000 spinal injections.

Education & Training

  • Fellowship: Florida Spine Institute@, Physical Medicine and Rehab, 1998
  • Residency: St. Vincent's Hospital@, physical medicine and rehabilitation, 1984
  • Internship: Nassau County Medical Center@, fifth pathway, 1982
  • Medical Education: Autonomous Univ of Guadalajara@, 1979

Board Certifications

  • Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

Languages Spoken

  • English

Age Group Treated

  • Adults

Patient Feedback

4.588024 average rating from 167 reviews

  • Excellent Care about how I was doing since the the first Visit how was I feeling this time and help me getting the right belt for my sciatica Thank You [redacted]

    2026-09-04

  • Dr. Richard Norris is A#1 and I feel privileged to be under his care!

    2026-08-31

  • I thought Dr Norris was fantastic. He understood my situation immediately, explained everything thoroughly, reassured me that this was manageable, and gave me hope for the first time in a year and a half.

    2026-08-30

  • I've been dealing with my hip issue for nearly two years and met with several different providers. Dr. Norris was the first person who I felt really listened to me, and educated me about what was going on. He used pictures from illustrative books to explain the hip joint and talked in ways that I could understand the medical language. He also laid out options going forward in a way that made me feel very empowered about the situation. I am grateful to have been referred to him!

    2026-08-22

  • I had been to a couple back doctors before this and I was getting a second opinion and I finally was able to get the correct answers and treatment that I need going forward from Dr. Norris. He really was amazing and I will be referring him to people. He was very informative, knew his stuff and a really great doctor all around.

    2026-08-24

  • Dr. Richard Norris is exceptional in terms of his analysis of my condition. I read his office notes which were accurate. I appreciate his approach, that being to diagnose the problem in order to treat it. Following several physical movements, his explanations regarding my symptoms and their origins were clear and easily understood. Dr. Norris took his time. I did not feel rushed and have confidence in working with him in support of treating my leg hip syndrome. [redacted]

    2026-08-19

  • DR NORRIS IS A PERSON I TRUST 100% ALWAYS HAVE AND ALWAYS WILL.

    2026-08-17

  • My experience with Dr. Norris was phenomenal. He's about the best doctor I've ever had to deal with in my 79 years. I'm very happy with how he treated me and I think my health is going to be a lot better as a result of seeing him.

    2026-08-10

  • My sister recommended Dr. Norris as he has helped her tremendously with her back problems. I felt comfortable in my dealings with him for the first time. I am glad that I was able to get an appointment with him.

    2026-08-07

  • I was very pleased with how much time Dr. Norris spent with me, specifically his willingness to explain what the medical issue is, and ways to address my concerns. He was attentive and respectful to my questions.

    2026-08-05

  • I had a good experience and will be following up with the doctor via phone. I do wish that he did neck injections.

    2026-08-03

  • Dr. Norris listened very attentively, made suggestions, spoke with another care provider, a doctor that I'd seen regarding this hip problem that I had and he was great, gave me a call and followed up and made suggestions and I really enjoyed having to be able to work with him.

    2026-07-29

  • all good

    2026-07-24

  • My experience with Dr. Norris and his nurses have always been top notch! Clearly, people in pain are going there for help...it's what spine medicine is...but this team is over and above with compassion and care. Dr. Norris ALWAYS explains everything with anatomical illustrations and easy to understand pain correlations. It's so validating to understand very real and debilitating pain patterns. You are all wonderful at this practice!

    2026-07-23

  • This provider, Dr Norris, and the other provider I see at CDH, [redacted], along with other nurses and providers within the inner offices are always wonderful. [redacted]

    2026-07-21

  • Dr. Norris was very good at listening and explaining things to me. I came away from the appointment feeling something was going to be done to help me.

    2026-07-11

  • I want to share how truly wonderful my experience with Dr. Norris was. He is a rare person and a deeply compassionate physician who took the extra time to sit down and truly listen to my concerns. It is clear that he genuinely cares about his patients, which he demonstrated perfectly by being very responsive and immediately following up on my requests to send out my referrals without delay. Dr. Norris is incredibly knowledgeable and helpful, guiding my care forward seamlessly. Beyond his exceptional medical expertise, he is a warm and generous person. I am immensely grateful for his kindness and support.

    2026-07-05

  • I'm glad Dr. Norris was available as soon as he was and has scheduled treatment sooner than I expected

    2026-07-05

  • He was wonderful. He listened and validated my feelings. He explained everything to me and made sure I had time to ask questions and explain my whole situation. I felt so wonderful about the whole experience and he left me feeling very confident about managing my condition in the future

    2026-07-01

  • Very thorough explaining my condition and planned treaTment

    2026-07-01

  • Dr. Norris was great

    2026-06-28

  • Dr. Norris is great! Explained everything in detail and listened to my symptoms and concerns.

    2026-06-27

  • informative friendly doctor

    2026-06-20

  • Wonderful experience with an excellent provider

    2026-06-14

  • they were very proffesional with what they did in regard to my problem

    2026-06-15

  • Dr. Norris is an expert in his field of medicine and continues to be a wealth of knowledge with his experience. I want to thank Dr. Norris for taking the time to go over any questions I had and for keeping track of everything that was said during the visit.

    2026-06-09

  • Dr. Norris is a knowlegable and proffesional care giver. I recomend him to people with my ailments.

    2026-06-08

  • Dr Norris is amazing! He diagnosed my problem in 10 minutes, and spent the rest of the time explaining my condition and discussing future treatments. He is humane, knowledgeable and effective. Best Dr I have seen in a long time! Don't ever let him retire!

    2026-06-07

  • Spent time explaining condition & best way to proceed with care.

    2026-06-03

  • I am in a good deal of pain and I was hoping for a quicker resolution to my problem.

    2026-05-30

  • Our 1st meeting. Gave me good information and we created a plan for my Treatment

    2026-05-27

  • I was frustrated that no real understanding of what is going on. Also doctor said couldn't give me prescription for pain. Told me to go back to primary physician.

    2026-05-25

  • The doctor was very patient with me, with my questions, and he explained in detail what I was dealing with. He had a very good, he's a good doctor. I liked him. Good personality.

    2026-04-30

  • I would recommend Dr Norris to anyone, he does a great job

    2026-04-27

  • Dr Norris is kind and generous with his time and knowledge. He is an excellent listener and explained several things to me which were quite helpful.

    2026-04-26

  • Dr. Norris was terrific in every respect. A top shelf pro. I couldn't be happier to have met him and with his insight and explanations.

    2026-04-26

  • Dr. Richard Norris is an exceptionally fine physician. He gave me sufficient time to explain my situation and then engaged me in a clear discussion of the variables associated with the symptoms I am experiencing. He quickly established my trust by addressing all of my concerns and providing me with thoughtful and clear ways of addressing a possible diagnosis and treatment.

    2026-04-25

  • Dr. Norris was extremely knowledgeable about my specific condition. Engage the proper clinical services to begin to treat my condition. He also gave me a lot of advice about things I can do in my day-to-day life that would make my condition easier to live with, and actually improve it.

    2026-04-25

  • Dr Norris did an excellent job of explaining my lower back ailment and why it causes pain. In addition, he explained what it would take to foster healing of my lower back in an understandable way.

    2026-04-06

  • Listened to me, knowledgeable, professional, confident, personable, thorough. Gave me a plan.

    2026-04-09

  • Dr. Norris and his medical assistant, as well as all of his reception staff, are amazing, always have been, and I am very, very confident in them and trust them very much. I'm very thankful to have them around. Thank you very much.

    2026-04-02

  • Provider did not review my chart before seeing me. He did not conduct a physical exam at all. He did a good job educating me on the issue, but spent at least 85% of the time talking and did almost no listening. He seemed genuinely unconcerned about my pain and really didn't provide much recourse on how I could feel better

    2026-03-31

  • I've been seeing this provider for several years and have always been satisfied with Dr. Norris.

    2026-03-29

  • Dr. Norris spent a great deal of time and effort to try to understand the exact cause of my problem. He then explained in detail what he thought might help me, and how he came to that conclusion. I believe he has proposed a thoughtful and logical way forward. Excellent visit.

    2026-03-29

  • He was very personable and thoughtful.

    2026-03-25

  • Dr. Norris gave me some good suggestions to improve my condition.

    2026-03-22

  • Excellent communication & personable

    2026-03-21

  • Very positive visit. Kind and cordial. Thorough. Very helpful.

    2026-03-15

  • One of the best doctors I've ever worked with in my [redacted] years. Prepared for visit when I walked in. Told him I was anxious. Had easy going manner that put me at ease. Took time to listen/get good history. I felt heard/respected. Took time to use charts, books, anatomical model, X-rays, plus his own knowledge base to explain my situation in way I understood. Did exam, able to form diagnosis. Liked his conservative approach to my situation. [redacted] Very humble about my confidence in him. [redacted] Rarely give a doc a 10 but he deserves it.

    2026-03-14

  • [redacted] in general, with my experience with him for the last 12 years, he's a wonderful, compassionate man, and I have been through so much trauma, and he also knows that I deal with a lot of anxiety, and a lot about other pressures, and has sought ways to help me, like teaching me about meditation, and different ways to deal with, and look at life, having severe chronic pain that is just on ending. He is a wonderful person to be in that position, and you guys are very, very lucky to have him representing you. And my name is [redacted], and yeah, when I think about him, I smile. [redacted]

    2026-03-14

  • I have not seen Dr. Norris for several years and looked forward to seeing him again. I was not disappointed. He listened intently to my recent back trauma, looked up e-rays made at CDH in [redacted] and provided I very clear and helpful reading of it. [redacted] Explained the pain source and reassured me that a conservative approach would be best (massage, posture, belt...). He is famous for clear explanations. I left knowing so much more, I calmed down, and I'm actually slowly continuing to improve.

    2026-03-12

  • Dr. Norris is a brilliant doctor. I appreciate him spending time going over everything with me. Thank you very much and happy new year.

    2026-01-01

  • Dr. Norris was thorough, patient, a very good listener, took my concerns very seriously, and empowered me to collaborate as a part of my care team in decision making. It was a great experience overall.

    2025-12-24

  • I felt heard and all my questions answered. With clear answer that I could understand.

    2025-12-20

  • Excellent care.

    2025-12-12

  • An excellent physician.

    2025-12-11

  • He was definitely worth waiting for. He was very knowledgeable & I really liked his style

    2025-12-11

  • Overall, my experience with both the health providers were excellent and I appreciate their knowledge and time. Thank you so much.

    2025-12-11

  • Dr Norris spent a lot of time explaining all aspects of how to get rid of all my pain.

    2025-12-07

  • Dr. Norris went above and beyond! [redacted] His was a great insightful evaluation into why I have had many months of 24 hour (it wakes me up several times at night) pain

    2025-12-01

  • Very good

    2025-11-30

  • I would just like for the doctor to listen more to the patient. If they have a request, the doctor should follow and respect it.

    2025-12-01

  • The doctor was very informative, listened to all my concerns, and gave me some great advice. If I have to go see him again, I look forward to it.

    2025-11-26

  • It was my first visit with this care provider. I think the visit was productive in helping identify the back issues I am having and providing an initial treatment to help remedy the situation. Dr. Norris seems very knowledgeable in his field and communicates clearly and positively with the client.

    2025-11-23

Accepted Insurance

  • Commonwealth Care Alliance
  • Medicare
  • MassHealth
  • Mass General Brigham Health Plan
  • WellSense
  • Fallon Health
  • Medicare ACO
  • Tufts Health Plan
  • Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
  • Blue Cross Blue Shield