Kristóf Perczeln, who attended the 2019 EFIC school in Klagenfurt shared his experience and impressions from the event.
“I applied for the Klagenfurt Pain School with the goal of enhancing my pain management skills with up-to-date knowledge and developing working relationships with European colleagues interested in the same field.
The Pain School took place from the September 8-13 in Pörtschach, a quiet little town outside Klagenfurt by the beautiful Wörthersee, which served as an ideal setting for intensive study. We kept a tight but well-structured schedule which provided a good framework for the lessons, workshops and interactive case discussions which constituted most of the program.
My perception was that these diverse forms of education complemented each other well and provided a good framework for a meaningful study. We could learn from professionals working in two centers of excellence (Prof. Likar’s team from Klagenfurt and Prof. Sittl’s team from Erlangen).
I especially liked the fact that many different professions were involved in teaching (thus mirroring an interdisciplinary approach in pain medicine), including a ‘seasoned’ chronic pain patient who shared his very valuable experience about patient self-management.
Based on Professor Likar’s account this pain school was intended as an introductory and comprehensive course, which goal I felt was effectively met by offering an insight into the principles (and ongoing debates) of most current fields of pain medicine.
The interactive sessions and case discussions made a point of giving us ‘Monday morning’ knowledge, which in my opinion was very well accomplished. I came home from Klagenfurt with many concrete ideas to advance my practice on the individual level and also suggestions on how to manage our patients better on an institutional level.
The other focus of the pain school for me was to gain experience from colleagues coming from different backgrounds, countries, and professions. Given the fact that most participants came from Southern or Eastern Europe, we had the possibility to compare pain management practices and possibilities among a very wide spectrum of European health care settings.
I found this very fruitful and helpful to see our situations in perspective. Spending our evenings together, involved in discussions about professional situations, difficulties and perspectives with personal relevance lead to important and meaningful acquaintances which I am sure will continue to develop into relevant cooperation furthering the cause of European pain management.
In conclusion I am very grateful for the generous support of EFIC for I feel that both of my goals were met in the Klagenfurt Pain School for my professional benefit and for the benefit of pain management at Semmelweis University too.”
To learn more about the EFIC pain schools please visit our website and click here.
