PgCert, PgDip, MSc in Pain Management

Department of Anaesthetics and Intensive Care Medicine

The Master of Science Degree in Pain Management is an interprofessional, distance and e-learning course intended for health care professionals who want to specialize in the field of pain management. It is also aimed at educationalists to provide the appropriate knowledge and expertise on pain to teach others from various disciplines. The syllabus adheres to the curriculum suggested by the International Association for the Study of Pain.

The MSc in Cardiff was the first of its kind when it commenced in 1996 and while no longer unique has a solid reputation as a leader in the field. We have considerable experience in delivering high quality MSc courses and have conferred approximately 500 awards.

We believe that pain is a multidimensional phenomenon and as such needs to be managed through interprofessional initiatives. These initiatives must be based on specialist knowledge, rigorous research and an advanced understanding of the physiological and behavioural concepts involved. The course allows students to develop their knowledge to an advanced level in all aspects of pain.

The course consists of eight modules over the twenty-four month period. In conjunction with the distance learning modules and e-learning, there will be four compulsory residential components where various teaching methods will be used to present practical and theoretical material to support the modules. Modules include:

• Module 1: Research and statistics
• Module 2: Physiology of pain
• Module 3: Pharmacology of pain
• Module 4: Behavioural science related to pain management
• Module 5: Introduction to pain management
• Module 6: Ethics
• Module 7: Behavioural and other psychological approaches to pain management
• Module 8: Physical therapy and pain management
• Module 9 & 10: Options

To support students in their academic pursuit, the Course Team are available 9 til 5 throughout the week. We encourage students to contact us regarding ideas for the assignment and then will subsequently review plans and a couple of pages of the assignment drafts to help and support their academic development. All students have a personal tutor who is there to provide pastoral support.

Key people or teams who are involved in delivering and/or assessing the course include Dr Beverley Collett, Dr Kathy Stannard, Dr Paul Watson, Dr Charles Gauci, Dr Nick Allcock, Professor George Hall, Professor Aitkenhead, Dr Dave Counsell, Professor Bridgit Dimond, Bath Chronic Pain Management Team, INPUT team, Brecon, Dr Jane Hazelgrove, Dr David Dutton, Dr Eloise Carr, Dr Kevin Markham, Professor Ian Power, Professor Mike Harmer, Professor Chris Main, Ms Ruth Day, Dr Steve Allen, Dr Mick Rothwell, among others.