Abbreviation EFIC Type NGO Headquarters Brussels, Belgium | Formation 1993 Purpose Humanitarian, research Region served Worldwide | |
The European Pain Federation EFIC®, formerly the European Federation of IASP Chapters, is a multidisciplinary professional organisation in the field of pain science and medicine, consisting of the 37 European National Pain Societies (chapters of IASP - International Association for the Study of Pain). Established in 1993, EFIC with its 37 constituent chapters represents close to 20,000 scientists, physicians, nurses, physiotherapists, psychologists and other healthcare professionals across Europe, who study pain and treat patients suffering from pain. The European Journal of Pain is published since January 1997 and currently issues 10 volumes per year.
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History of EFIC
EFIC was founded by European IASP Chapters at a joint meeting held during the World Congress on Pain in Paris, August 27, 1993. During his time as IASP President, Ulf Lindblom had developed the idea to build a Federation of IASP Chapters in Europe. It was conceived as a way for better communication between the IASP headquarters in the USA and the European IASP Chapters. The main aim of establishing a European federation was to offer advice and guidance in pain medicine specifically tailored for the needs of the European countries and patients.
The first EFIC "Pain in Europe" congress was held in Verona, Italy, 1995.
Activities
EFIC activities and initiatives are directed to the education and research in the field of pain medicine. The biennial EFIC Congress – Pain in Europe is an international educational exchange forum on pain issues. EYAP - European Year Against Pain is a public awareness initiative on a yearly basis aimed to stress the impact of determined aspect of pain in Europe and maximize the impact on health care professionals, the media, and the public. SIP - The Societal Impact of Pain is aimed to improve awareness of the societal impact of pain through the discussion of the key challenges, goals, policy instruments with budget holders, strategic decision makers and representatives of stakeholder organizations to improve pain care in Europe. Specially, the Road Map for Action called upon European governments and EU institutions to work on concrete policy dimensions of “pain” that should be a top priority of the national healthcare system.
Educational Initiatives
EFIC is offering various ways of further education in pain management. The EFIC Pain Schools provide courses for young doctors who are interested and at the beginning of their involvement in pain management. They also help pain clinicians to refine their clinical neurological approach and to improve their ability to interpret instrumental and laboratory findings.
The Educational Support Grant for Eastern European countries is aimed to improve the scope and availability of education of pain clinicians in Eastern Europe. Fellowship Grants are available for candidates who are to be trained in specific pain treatment specialties and who will bring this knowledge to use in their surrounding localities. Additionally to the EFIC-owned European Journal of Pain (EJP), which is one of the top ranked scientific journals in pain medicine, several E-Learning Tools are being offered to further deepen one’s knowledge of pain and pain management. The biennial awarded E-G-G (EFIC Grunenthal Grant) totals €200,000 and aims to support young scientists early in their career in carrying out innovative clinical pain research projects.