PANACEA Case Study: EFIC’s Role in European Research Collaboration

About the PANACEA Project

The PANACEA project (Special Needs by Placebo Programme to Advise, Normalise and Control its European Administration) is a European initiative funded under the Erasmus+ programme. The project addresses a key gap in healthcare education: the lack of structured training on placebo and nocebo effects in clinical practice. Although these mechanisms significantly influence treatment outcomes—especially in pain medicine—they are often underrepresented in medical education. PANACEA bridges this gap by transforming scientific evidence into practical, accessible educational resources for healthcare professionals and students.

Key outputs of the project include:

• A scientifically validated syllabus on placebo and nocebo effects
• Educational modules and clinical recommendations
• A web-based learning platform for healthcare training

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Why This Matters for Pain and Healthcare

By combining research, education, and digital innovation, PANACEA contributes to improving healthcare training across Europe. Placebo and nocebo effects play a crucial role in healthcare outcomes.

• Positive expectations and effective communication can improve treatment results
• Negative expectations or poor communication can worsen symptoms and reduce efficacy

These effects are particularly relevant in pain management, where patient perception and clinician interaction directly influence outcomes. Despite their importance, many healthcare professionals receive little formal training in managing these mechanisms. The PANACEA project addresses this need by:

• Providing evidence-based education
• Supporting ethical clinical application
• Promoting more patient-centred care

This aligns closely with EFIC’s mission to advance pain research, education, and clinical practice across Europe.

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EFIC’s Role in the PANACEA Consortium

Within the PANACEA project, EFIC played a dual role combining scientific expertise and dissemination leadership.

Scientific contribution

EFIC contributed its expertise in pain research and clinical practice, ensuring that project outputs are relevant and applicable in real-world healthcare settings. EFIC also led a Europe-wide study exploring:

• Healthcare professionals’ understanding of placebo and nocebo effects
• Current clinical practices
• Training needs across Europe

These insights directly informed the development of the project’s educational materials.

Dissemination leadership

EFIC was responsible for developing and implementing the project’s dissemination strategy, ensuring that results reached key stakeholders across Europe. Through its network of approximately 20,000 healthcare professionals, EFIC connected scientific outputs with:

• Clinicians
• Researchers
• Educators
• Policy stakeholders

This combination of roles ensured both scientific quality and real-world impact.

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EFIC’s Dissemination Approach in EU Projects

EFIC delivers structured, results-driven dissemination strategies tailored to European research collaborations.

Core components include:

• Communication strategy (objectives, audiences, messaging, tools)
• Translation of complex scientific concepts into clear, engaging content
• Development of explainer documents and infographics, branded social media templates
• Production of video interviews and webinars
• Organisation of live and hybrid events
• Targeted stakeholder outreach and engagement
• Integration of digital platforms and learning tools

This approach ensures that research outputs are not only visible, but also understood, adopted, and sustained.

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Dissemination Strategy and Activities

EFIC implemented a multi-channel dissemination strategy designed to maximise reach and long-term impact.

Objectives

• Raise awareness of placebo and nocebo effects
• Promote PANACEA educational resources and tools
• Position the PANACEA platform as a central knowledge hub
• Support long-term uptake and sustainability

Target audiences

• Healthcare professionals
• Medical and nursing students
• Educators and curriculum developers
• Scientific societies and policymakers

Key activities

• Website, newsletter, and social media promotion
• Development of visual materials (e.g. infographics)
• Collaboration with scientific organisations
• Direct outreach to 100+ medical education leaders across Europe

Events

The PANACEA Final Conference, organised as a hybrid event, attracted a broad European audience of clinicians, researchers, and educators with over 800 registrations. These activities ensured strong visibility and engagement across multiple stakeholder groups. A recording of the event can be watched here:

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Results and Impact

The PANACEA project achieved strong evaluation results, particularly in dissemination:

• 92/100 score for dissemination
• Targets met and exceeded
• Recognition for a well-structured, flexible, and impact-oriented strategy

Key outcomes

• Wide reach across healthcare, academic, and policy audiences
• High engagement with project outputs and events
• Delivery of high-quality, practical educational resources

The project successfully produced validated, transferable outputs that can strengthen healthcare education across Europe.