April 30, 2020, CHICAGO – The official journal of the American Academy of Pain Medicine (AAPM), Pain Medicine, has published an article written by Board Members of the Association of Pain Program Directors (AAPD) titled “Maintaining high quality multidisciplinary pain medicine fellowship programs: Part I: Innovations in pain fellows education, research, applicant selection process, wellness and ACGME implementation during the Covid-19 Pandemic”. The article provides guidance and recommendations for pain program directors to continue trainee education and research while ensuring trainee well-being.
“The COVID-19 pandemic and associated social distancing requirements are having a profound impact on the health care system, including on the clinical duties of pain fellows,” says AAPM President Ajay Wasan, MD MSc. “Pain fellows are the future of our specialty, and it’s critical that we provide them with the resources and guidance they need to effectively complete their training and launch their careers.”
In addition to detailing alterations to ACGME policies and fellow education, research, and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic, the article also provides recommendations for how program directors can conduct interviews with future fellows while maintaining social distancing.
Given the urgent need for this information to be publicly available to program directors and fellows across the country as quickly as possible, the article has been published and is freely accessible as an Accepted Manuscript. The Accepted Manuscript is the final draft author manuscript, as accepted for publication by the journal, including modifications based on referees’ suggestions but before it has undergone copyediting, typesetting, or proof correction. Within a few weeks, the Accepted Manuscript will be replaced by a corrected proof, known as the Version of Record. Neither the Accepted Manuscript nor the Version of Record may be hosted by any organization or journal other than Pain Medicine, but anyone is welcome to link to the guideline.
A panel of article authors will discuss their recommendations during a live webinar on Friday, May 1, 6-7:15 pm CT. This live CME activity is free, and registration is required by logging into an existing AAPM account or creating a new account. Learn more and register. A recording of the webinar will be available following the live event.
About AAPM
The American Academy of Pain Medicine is the premier medical association for pain physicians and their treatment teams with some 2,000 members. Now in its 37th year of service, the Academy’s mission is to advance and promote the full spectrum of multidisciplinary pain care, education, advocacy, and research to improve function and quality of life for people in pain. Information is available on the Academy’s website at painmed.org.