The Northern Ireland Pain Summit: Pain, policy and employment

Episode 35,   Jun 13, 2012, 02:08 PM

The challenges of improving pain management in Northern Ireland, and raising awareness of chronic pain among businesses.

A special edition of Airing Pain, covering the 2012 Northern Ireland Pain Summit, organised by the Pain Alliance for Northern Ireland. There we interviewed representatives from government and the voluntary sector, health professionals, and of course patients.

We hear about the needs of patients and provision of pain services in Northern Ireland from, among others, Chief Medical Officer, Dr Michael McBride, and Dr William Campbell, Consultant in Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine at Ulster Hospital, Dundonald, Belfast. Patients attending the summit give us their stories and say what brought them there and Tanya Kennedy, director of Business in the Community, sets out her thoughts on how the world of business can better take account of chronic pain.

Dr Pamela Bell, Chair of the Pain Alliance for Northern Ireland, and Kate Fleck, national Director for Arthritis Care in Northern Ireland, conclude with their thoughts on the ‘road map’ for action following on from the pain summit. 

In this programme:

  • Dr Michael McBride, Chief Medical Officer for Northern Ireland
  • Dr Pamela Bell, Chair of the Pain Alliance for Northern Ireland
  • Kate Fleck, national director for Arthritis Care in Northern Ireland
  • Dr William Campbell, Consultant in Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine at Ulster Hospital, Dundonald, Belfast
  • Tanya Kennedy, director of Business in the Community