Dear AAPM members and colleagues,

During a recent slump in morale at my hospital (the dreaded burnout in medicine), my medical student, Louisa, brought me a jolt of optimism for the future of pain medicine. I thought I would share this with all of you, as we balance the day-to-day struggles, long hours, never-ending in-basket messages, research funding uncertainties, colleagues leaving clinical medicine, home stressors, and more — it can all seem quite daunting. Now more than ever, we need to support each other, foster collaboration and mentorship, and identify new ways to deliver pain care that help not only our patients but also ourselves.

I met Louisa during her first year of medical school, more than three years ago, after a lecture I gave together with one of my long-time patients who suffers from pelvic pain. Louisa’s enthusiasm was infectious and has continued throughout her student career. And now I can proudly share that she has chosen Anesthesiology for residency and plans to enter our field of Pain Medicine!

Louisa recently joined me for an elective in my pain clinic. She spoke of her sister’s struggles with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and the challenges she has faced finding the right providers, the time she had to take off from school, and the overall impact chronic pain has had on her life. Meeting one of my patients with EDS, Louisa shared her sister’s journey, and I saw my patient’s eyes brighten. My patient shared her favorite Pilates video and support network for EDS patients, providing hope for Louisa’s sister. By the end of what I thought might have been a challenging visit (my patient’s pain had been high), we shared smiles, a hug, and a plan for helping her turn down the volume of her pain.

A photo of superstars of the future of pain medicine, Carrie (a former medical student of mine and now an Anesthesiology resident) and Louisa, who joined me to present at a conference!

Louisa prompted me to also reflect on my journey into pain medicine: my mother’s chronic pain, my most fascinating medical school lectures (an absolute favorite was Howard Fields speaking about the placebo-nocebo response!), my many mentors and colleagues through AAPM. Our challenge is to continue to identify students and colleagues to bring into and elevate our discipline, just as many others have done for us. Together, the future is bright!

Our Academy is committed to the future of pain medicine and fostering and building new collaborations to help you and your patients. I am grateful to @David Jevotovsky, @Ashlyn Brown, and the AAPM Resident Ambassadors who have volunteered to promote pain medicine mentorship for medical students. We have many more opportunities for you to identify colleagues to team up with through our Academy, regardless of your career stage. Please be in touch! I look forward to hearing from you.

Louisa’s pan medicine elective has ended, and I know that our month together and the patients we cared for will leave a permanent impression on Louisa. And on me! I am now on a much-needed break with my family, first to the beaches of Long Island and then to the Pocono Hills for some camping adventures. I, too, hope you can enjoy the last weeks of summer with your friends and family. Thank you for all you do!