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Centers for Disease Control Recommends Shingles Vaccine

Almost one out of three people in America will develop shingles during their lifetime, with greater risk to people over age 60. The CDC says that the only way to reduce the risk of developing shingles and the long-term pain that can follow shingles is to get vaccinated. For more details, please visit the CDC website.

Pain and Complementary Therapies Webinar 5/20/08 at 8 pm (EST)

Please join us on Tuesday, May 20th, at 8 pm (EST) for a free one hour online live interactive webinar, Complementary Therapies for Pain Management, given by Judith M. Fouladbakhsh PhD, APRN, BC, AHN-C, Assistant Professor at Wayne State University, Advanced Practice Holistic Nurse and Certified Healing Touch Practitioner. Space is limited so please click here to register. NOTE: We're sorry that our program does not support Macs or PCs with Vista OS or dialup Internet access. You may register and participate by phone only; we will post the PowerPoint presentation on our website the day before the webinar so that you can follow the program.

Can’t make it this time? Don’t worry! We will archive this webinar on the APF website.

APF Board Member, Perry Fine, MD, Receives Prestigious Public Service Award

Perry Fine, MD, Professor of Anesthesiology at the University of Utah School of Medicine and member of APF’s Board of Directors recently was awarded the American Pain Society’s prestigious John and Emma Bonica Public Service Award in recognition of his contributions in the fields of pain management and end-of-life care. View the full press release.

Regulatory Setbacks for People with Pain

On May 5-6, the FDA dedicated two days to hearings about pain medication where fears of abuse overshadowed concerns about adequate care for the millions of Americans with pain. The lack of focus on the needs of people with pain is a travesty. While prescription drug abuse is a serious and major concern, the voices of people with pain have been minimized in favor of providing a platform for stories of the tragic consequences of people who decide to take pain medication without a legitimate medical reason or prescription. The APF’s Director of Advocacy, Micke Brown, BSN, RN, testified at one of the hearings; you can read Micke’s testimony here. The APF has also issued a position statement on these hearings. Ironically, this comes at a time when key opinion leaders call for balance in opioid prescribing.

Leading Pain Organizations’ Support of Fibromyalgia Community Recognized through Charitable Donation Program!

The American Chronic Pain Association (ACPA), American Pain Foundation (APF) and National Pain Foundation (NPF) are pleased to announce that in recognition of Fibromyalgia Awareness Day and the support they provide to millions of people affected by chronic pain conditions like fibromyalgia, Pfizer is providing a charitable donation to support their educational activities and advocacy efforts. Click here to review the full joint statement.

APF Releases Report, Calls for More Balanced Perspective About Opioid Therapy for Pain Management

APF recently convened a roundtable of leading pain experts titled, Provider Prescribing Patterns and Perceptions: Identifying Solutions to Build Consensus on Opioid Use in Pain Management, to discuss the ongoing challenges surrounding optimal opioid therapy and pain management. Esteemed roundtable participants issued an urgent call to the pain community to begin to reframe the discussion about opioid therapy in a way that incorporates a more balanced perspective of the risks and benefits of these medications. This lively and thoughtful discussion, supported by an educational grant from Endo Pharmaceuticals, also served as a springboard for future programming to encourage greater collaboration and consensus about opioid therapy.

Read the summary of the November 9, 2007 roundtable discussion and key survey findings about prescriber patterns and perceptions.

APF's Will Rowe Writes Blog

Will Rowe, APF's Chief Executive Officer, is now writing a regular blog for the Chronic Pain Connection site hosted by our partners, the Health Central Network. Will writes about pain issues that are critically important for people with pain and those who care for them. Read Will's entries and make your comments...

Pain 101 With Micke Brown, BSN, RN

Pain 101: An Introduction to Pain for Patients and Caregivers. This limited online chat, with our very own Micke Brown, BSN, RN, Director of Advocacy, American Pain Foundation, was held on March 25, 2008. Read the transcript of the chat and find helpful information for those who have chronic pain and their caregivers. Click here to join PainAid, get support online, and read previous transcripts of chats. Stay connected! More chats are coming soon!

Rep. David Loebsack (IA-2) promotes the Military Pain Care Act (HR 5465) of 2008

Rep. David Loebsack (IA-2) tours UA’s Pain Medicine Center and promotes the Military Pain Care Act of 2008. Read the article and please show your support for our troops by Taking Action Now! Click here for more information.

If you represent an organization, please view our endorsement request and join us by having your organization endorse the Consensus Statement supporting appropriate pain care for our military and their families. Click here to view the Consensus Statement and the full list of organizations endorsing it.

Introducing the New Military/Veterans Survey for 2008

APF is committed to reaching out to Military and Veteran persons who suffer chronic daily pain and provide them with educational information to improve their pain care, decrease their sense of isolation, and support them in their pursuit of a better quality of life for themselves, their families and caregivers. So that we may better address those needs, we ask that you complete our New Military /Veterans Survey. Please help us so that we may better serve you.

APF Collaborates with Life Love & Health

APF collaborates with Life Love & Health to launch a series of brief messages about pain. Life Love & Health has become America's most listened-to daily health and lifestyle program, reaching millions of listeners via XM; CNN, Fox, ESPN; on Sirius; Public Radio affiliates; Wal-Mart Radio; www.HealthRadio.net Internet radio; and the Voice of America. Listen to our shows Debunking Pain Myths featuring Dr. Scott Fishman and Dr. Perry Fine and Living With Pain featuring Dr. Todd Sitzman and 17-yr old Maura Hollister who lives with pain.

Pain and Creativity

Has your experience with pain (either personally or through a loved one) ever prompted you to express yourself in a creative way? Some of the most authentic and soulful works have had their origins in the deeply personal experience of pain. Please consider submitting poetry, prose, digital photograph or video to APF's online Pain and Creativity Center, provided in collaboration with our project partner, the HealthCentral Network. Click here for more information.

ABC News: "What Is Pain?"

ABC News has aired three interviews in their online On Call + Pain Management Center, featuring pain management experts including two APF board members. In the first segment, “What Is Pain?,” APF Board member and PCAC co-chair Andrea Cooper, and her daughter, Maura Hollister, speak about living with chronic pain. APF board member Russell Portenoy, MD and Woodson C. Merrell, M.D., Sc.D. from the Beth Israel Medical Center discuss pain management practice and issues. Continue watching to see additional segments, Children and Pain: How Can You Tell if Your Child is in Pain? and Addiction to Pain Pills: How to Manage Your Medication to Avoid Addiction.

Please visit the ABC News On Call + Pain Management Center to post a comment thanking ABC for their coverage of this important subject.

APF Now a Pain Treatment Topics Affiliate!

The mission of Pain Treatment Topics is to serve as a noncommercial resource for healthcare professionals, providing open access to clinical news, guidelines and reports, research, information and education for a better understanding of evidence-based pain-management practices. Visit their website at http://www.pain-topics.org!

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