The Committee on Advancing Pain Research, Care, and Education is calling on individuals that suffer from pain, and those professionals and individuals that provide services to or care for those who suffer from pain, to help committee members better understand what it is like to live with pain. This is a critical time to share your story, whether you are an individual with pain, family member, caregiver or health care provider. With the passage of the Pain Care Policy Act in 2010, Congress has commissioned the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to convene a committee to review pain research, care and education and explore ways to improve pain treatment in the United States.
Now is the time to tell your story and make your voice heard! Share your individual experiences with pain and how it affects your life, including:
- Barriers that have prevented you from receiving effective pain care,
- Stigmas you have endured as someone struggling with pain, and
- Experiences (positive and negative) you have had when seeking treatment.
Providers are also asked to submit information on:
- Groups that may be inadequately treated for pain, and
- Clinical experiences in providing pain care, particularly in the primary care setting.
Please submit your comments by February 8, 2011 to the committee here.
Next, share this article with your family members, friends, colleagues and health care providers and ask them to respond. Don’t forget to post this on your Facebook wall or send a tweet to your followers on Twitter.
The American Pain Foundation finally, invites those submitting comments to send copies of their letters to APF at media@painfoundation.org.
