News from the European Pain Federation Chapters

New councillor for the Austrian Pain Society

Wolfgang Jaksch is head of the Outpatient Pain Clinic and Acute Pain Service, at the Wilhelminenspital / Vienna, a teaching hospital of the University of Vienna. He has been president of the Austrian Pain Society (APS) between 2015 and 2017. He is still a member of the board. The main topics in his period as president were to improve the care of Austrian pain-patients. Under his patronage, various national specialist societies’ defined the structure and quality criteria for pain management centres in Austria. On the occasion of “The Global Year Against Pain After Surgery” he initiated a multidisciplinary paper dealing with this topic together with the society of anaesthesiology and numerous professional societies involved in surgery. He was one of the initiators for the organisation of an international congress of the German-speaking countries Austria, Germany and Switzerland called „Dreiländertagung ACHD 2019“.His goal for his period as a councillor for the Austrian Pain Society is to improve collaboration with international pain societies, especially in Europe.

Wolfgang Jaksch as a pain specialist is/has been:

• member of the board (Austrian Pain Society)
• vice-president (APS)
• president (APS)
• member of the ÖGARI (Austrian Society of Anaesthesiology, Resuscitation and Intensive Care Medicine) and head of the working group “acute pain“
• member of “Change pain“: European working group (EFIC, Gruenenthal)
• member of the International Association for the Study of Pain

In November 2020 the French Pain Society (SFETD) changed half of its Board members, including the President (now Valeria Martinez), Vice-President (Sylvie Rostaing), and EFIC Councillor (Luis Garcia-Larrea). Find out more here. 

After the fusion in the year 2000 of two former and ‘parallel’ pain societies, the SFETD celebrated this year its 20th anniversary having to deal with Covid restrictions and, for the first time, obliged to hold a fully virtual National Congress. Despite the difficulties inherent to this type of event, the Congress was a success in terms of number of sessions held and participants (992 attendants registered), although attendance at regular congresses is often more than twice this figure. The SFETD next meeting is to be held in Montpellier on 17-19 November 2021. We will of course adapt the Congress to a sanitary context that nobody can foresee, but hope very much that it will be fully in vivo, and gather the usual number of participants!

The Congress closing lecture was given by Luis Villanueva, former student of Jean-Marie Besson, then his colleague and friend, who retraced 50 years of pain research in France, starting with Besson’s early work showing the specific effects of morphine on spinal cord neurons, thus paving the way to local opioid therapy, and followed by an impressive series of basic, clinical and political developments till our days, including the development of the Pain society and the French pain research network. In parallel to the Congress, the SFETD held a press conference to unveil a ‘road map’ based on 22 proposals to improve the management and societal awareness of pain, which were endorsed by 13 pain-related societies in France. These proposals develop across 5 axes: (i) The improvement of societal recognition of pain, notably by implementing a ‘national pain plan’; (ii) the strengthening of training in pain for both young health professionals and patients, including the promotion of “expert patients” and the creation of a Diploma of Specialized Studies in Pain Medicine; (iii) the perpetuation of hospital structures for evaluation and treatment of chronic pain in, which are pivotal actors to improve its management ; (iv) the optimization of “care pathways” for the painful patient, selecting best practices and fighting against medication misuse, and (v) the improvement of pain care in vulnerable groups (geriatrics, psychiatry, disability). Only time will tell whether these proposals are heard and supported by political decisions, and connect with similar endeavours currently on-going in other European countries.

Upcoming Events of the Hellenic Society of Algology for the year 2021:

1) Continuing Medical Education in Algology

The program is under the auspices and endorsement of the EFIC (European Federation of IASP Chapters). It will be awarded by the Panhellenic Medical Association in accordance with UEMS EACCME criteria – with 41 credits of Continuing Medical Education (CME-CPD)

The seminar will be conducted in 4 courses and includes more than 50 hours of Theoretical and Practical Education on the Field of Algology, based on “Core Curriculum for Professional Education on Pain”, 3rd Edition of IASP, 2005, official translation of the HSA with the permission of IASP (2008) and the new curriculum of EFIC (2016). Moreover, participants will be required to complete 20 daily attendance at selected Pain Clinics – Units or Centers operating in the Greater Athens area for obtaining knowledge and experience in the operation of different structures on the treatment of patients suffering from chronic pain syndromes. At the end of each course, the trainees will be evaluated (Test Multiple Choice) and will complete forms for program evaluation and trainers.

• February26-27, 2021
• April 9-10, 2021
• September 24-25, 2021
• November 26-27, 2021

      Due to the COVID pandemic, it will be conducted online.

 2) Webinars

o    Cryoanalgesia in pain management: A new approach to treating pain

(January 18, 2021)

o   Physical Medicine interventions in persistent, treatment-resistant chronic pain syndromes (part A)

(March 01,2021)

o   Cephalalgias – Pain of the head

(April 12, 2021)

o   Physical Medicine interventions in persistent, treatment-resistant chronic pain syndromes (part B)

 (May, 2021)

o   Introduction of new type opioids in the Greek market (oramorph)

 (June 2021)

 3) October Seminar 2021, Main Theme: Back Pain

The annual conference of the HUNGARIAN PAIN SOCIETY is planned to be held on 5-6 November 2021 in Szeged, Hungary

The main topics of the congress are:
– IASP Global Year Against Pain 2021: Beck Pain
– Novel results of the Hungarian pain research labs
– Free topics in the field of pain
– Poster presentations

Find out more about the event here.

Here is the latest newsletter of the Lithuanian chapter.

The Norwegian Pain Society has approximately 400 members. The annual meeting scheduled for January 2021 was canceled due to the pandemic. Open webinars, free of charge, will be arranged monthly from April 2021. The Norwegian Pain Society (NOSF) has signed an agreement with Scandinavian Association for the Study of Pain (SASP) which gives NOSF-members dual membership with SASP. The NOSF-membership also includes a full subscription to the Medline –indexed journal Scandinavian Journal of Pain.

DOR MAGAZINE: New Open Access Digital Platform

From now on you can consult and submit your articles for Dor Magazine wherever and whenever you want through the new digital platform www.dor.pt. With this new format, APED’s official organ of expression is:

• aligned with the indexing requirements of Scielo, Excerpt Medica, and Medline;
  offers free access to scientific content;
• has a digital platform for the submission of articles/abstracts;
• has a more fluid reading and always available for consultation wherever and whenever one wishes
• has a faster and simpler system for consulting, searching, and referencing content.

With this step APED strengthens a closer relationship and a more frequent contact with the scientific community. And reinforces the commitment to continue publishing the most relevant and pertinent themes associated with pain. To access the latest edition of Dor Magazine and/or propose an article for publishing go to: www.dor.pt

APED launches a digital interactive Portuguese edition of the book “How to Comfort a Baby in Intensive Care” by Linda S.Franck

This book is a practical manual with simple tips and explanations that can guide parents in this context to help their baby feel as comfortable as possible. In order to make it clearer and easier the communication this Portuguese edition was built as a multimedia version that gives the reader a more interactive experience with the option of taking notes while reading, listening to the content, and watching the videos.

Dr. Clara Abadesso, Pediatrician and Coordinator of the APED Pediatric Pain Working Group, that led this project believes that this publication can be useful in any type of intensive care unit, such as the cardiac intensive care units and pediatric intensive care units.

“How to comfort your baby in intensive care” aims to build a bridge between parents of new born babies admitted to intensive care units and health care professionals. The promotion of parents’ knowledge about pain allows a more active involvement in the approach to pain and the creation of a key partnership with health professionals in this mission to provide the best care.

To access the Portuguese interactive edition of “How to Comfort a baby in intensive care” go to www.aped-dor.org

APED held Webinar “Medicinal Cannabis in the treatment of Chronic Pain – future perspectives for use in Portugal”

As presented by Dra. Ana Pedro, APED’s president, one of the main objectives of this conference was to promote discussion on cannabis for medicinal purposes in the treatment of chronic pain, in Portugal, and to share international knowledge and good practices in this area. Hence the very practical and specific approach to the subject presented by Dr. Janosch Kratz, main keynote speaker, and the focus on a larger part of the webinar dedicated to an open Q&A to the audience.

This exclusive for health professional’s webinar was held by APED in collaboration with Tilray and was attended by more than 500 professionals.

You can read Dr. Janosch Kratz article and see the “Best of” video of the webinar here: www.aped-dor.org

The Slovak Society of Study and Treatment of Pain has a new executive committee, a new president, and an EFIC Councillor. Based on the elections that took place in October 2020, a new committee was formed, which subsequently elected its president – Miroslav Ferencik. He replaced Marta Kulichova. The Committee, as well as the newly elected President, would like to thank Marta Kulichová for her many years of work and contribution, whether in the function of the President of the Society or the EFIC Councillor.

Slovenian Association for Pain Management has new leadership. 

New Executive Board:
President: Barbara Kosmina Stefancic, MD
Vice President: Bozena Jerkovic Parac, MD
Secretary: Ana Pekle Golez, MD
Treasurer: Neli VIntar, MD, PhD

The following councilors were elected:
Nevenka Krcevski Skvarc, MD, PhD
Gorazd Pozlep, MD
Aleksander Stepanovic, MD, PhD
Nikolina Rijavec, MD, PhD
Martin Rakusa, MD, PhD
Zala Kuret, MD, PhD
Jan Petrinja, MD

Here is the latest newsletter of the Spanish chapter.

British Pain Society Annual Scientific Meeting 2021 – 27-29 April 2021