The Society continued to provide an educational programme to increase the knowledge of pain management to both professionals and lay people within the remit of the Memoranda and Articles of Association. It has been successful in producing the following series of meetings and publications:
Society Meetings/Events
- The Science and Research Committee held a successful first meeting on ‘Focus on Pain Research’ on 7th March 2018. This was a pivotal meeting in terms of pain research in the UK and it is intended to hold a further meeting in 2019.
- The Society held its 51st Annual Scientific Meeting (ASM) in Brighton on 01-02 May 2018 which was attended by 402 participants.
- The Education Committee continued with its series of one day study days. Three study days were held in 2018:
- Pain in Military Veterans & Pain in Torture Survivors – 26th February 2018
- Integrating Hypnosis into Pain Management – 1st October 2018
- Implanted pelvic materials and chronic pain: the full story – 12th November 2018
- The Patient Liaison Committee held its annual meeting on 2nd October 2018.
SIG Meetings/Events
- On 2nd – 5th July, the Philosophy & Ethics Society SIG held a meeting on Burnout and The Healing Power of Language ‘’
Publications/Resources
- The Society continues to provide its quarterly Newsletter ‘Pain News’ free of charge to its members.
- The Society continues to provide its quarterly journal ‘British Journal of Pain’ free of charge to its members. In December 2017, the journal was moved behind a paywall for non-members.
- The Society published a new publication on ‘Pre-registration Pain Education: A practical guide to incorporating pain education into pre-registration curricular for healthcare professionals in the UK’.
- The Society also jointly published with The British Geriatrics Society and the Royal College of Nursing, ‘The Assessment of Pain in Older People: UK National Guidelines’ as a supplement in Age and Ageing Journal.
- All the Society’s publications and patient information leaflets are available to download free of charge from the website.
- The Society’s social media presence on Twitter and Facebook continues to grow and develop.
- The online discussion forum for members has proven popular and continues on into 2019.
- In 2018, the Society received 35 requests from main stream media for comment.
Bursaries & Grants
- The Society awarded 13 members of the Society bursaries to attend its ASM in Brighton.
Information for people affected by pain
- The Society, although an organisation for healthcare professionals, provides a copy of the British Pain Society publication Understanding and Managing Long Term Pain: Information for Patients and a list of self-help groups and other useful addresses to people affected by pain who contact the Society.
- In addition, the majority of the Society’s professional publications, have a sister patient version.
- The Society has also contributed to joint patient information leaflets with other organisations.
- The Society launched a National Awareness Campaign for Pain, to raise the profile of pain and to generate income to the Society, which continues into 2019.