Cancer pain meeting needs stronger liaisons
The eighth national meeting of state cancer pain initiatives, "Broadening the Base Focusing the Mission," will be held June 26 to 28 in St. Paul, MN. After a period of growth and development, the pain initiatives are entering a new phase of trying to maintain their viability while developing a national infrastructure through the embryonic American Alliance of Cancer Pain Initiatives, says University of Wisconsin pharmacy professor June Dahl, PhD, founder of the pain initiative movement.
Sessions at the national meeting will focus on:
• how innovative ideas are diffused out into the culture;
• the challenge of physician-assisted suicide for pain management advocates;
• managed care and coverage issues;
• how to argue for the bottom-line benefits of better pain management in health care institutions;
• confronting myths and misconceptions about pain treatment;
• an update on the regulation of pain drugs.
The Resource Center for State Cancer Pain Initiatives, established by Dahl at the University of Wisconsin, is continuing its work, although that is being redefined by the emergence of the new national organization. Dahl also agrees that connections between hospice groups and the pain initiatives need to be strengthened, although strong liaisons already exist in a few states, notably Kentucky and Maine, since the two movements share many of the same values regarding pain management and patient advocacy.
[For general information about the national meeting in St. Paul, contact Sarah Aslakson at (608) 263-2856. Or the Resource Center at (608) 265-4013. To register for the meeting, call (608) 262-1397.]
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