Debra Weiner is a managing partner of Aventine HealthSciences, a medical communication agency for pain and neuroscience created in 2002. She is also on the Board of Directors of the American Society of Pain Educators. Her primary role at Aventine is to develop new business, primarily expanding upon PAINWeek®. Aventine will soon be launching a PAINWeekEnd™ Professional Conference series and a PAINWeekEnd™ Health Expo series, directed toward consumers. Additionally, they are exploring partnerships for a PAINWeek Global Conference series as well.

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Questions

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Evelyn Corsini, MSW:

Please provide a brief history of PAINWeek meetings.

Debra Weiner: We occupy an unusual niche in the realm of medical communications companies as we have a singular focus on pain. In 2004 we helped launch the American Society of Pain Educators, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and provided administrative support to facilitate the development of their Certified Pain Educator (CPE) credential. In 2005, Aventine produced the first Pain Educators Forum, designed specifically for clinicians interested in pursuing the CPE path. This led us to consider developing a broader conference for “frontline” clinicians who treat chronic pain. PAINWeek was then launched in September 2007. It was important to us to make PAINWeek an inclusive conference, and we sought and secured the participation of a dozen or more professional and patient advocacy organizations.

EC: Describe how the conference has grown over the years, how many people have attended, and what is the variety of professionals who attend?

DW: PAINWeek has grown tremendously over the last 3 years, and we welcomed over 1100 delegates in 2009. Demographically, 56% are physicians (MD/DO), and the remainder are allied healthcare practitioners, including nurses, psychologists, and pharmacists. The conference is managed by Aventine, and it is sponsored by Global Education Group.

PAINWeek is convened annually in September at the Red Rock Casino, Resort, and Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada. This year’s conference takes place from September 8 – 11, and will present over 100 hours of continuing medical education, across multiple disciplines. Some of the many topic areas are complementary and alternative medicine; health coaching; geriatric and pediatric pain management; medical/legal issues; neurological issues; pain and chemical dependency; pharmacology; regional pain syndromes; rheumatology; and much more.

EC: What are some of the program highlights this year?

DW: For the first time, the National Association of Drug Diversion Investigators (NADDI) will be presenting a full-day program that will cover drug diversion, organized fraudulent prescription drug rings, doctor shopping, and pill mills, to offer a law enforcement perspective on drug abuse. They will also convene a dinner symposium focused on recovery among teenagers.

We will also be presenting a full-day program on narcoterrorism. This track brings together renowned experts from medicine, ethics, cultural intelligence, policy, law and the military to present a multidisciplinary perspective of how these issues affect the scope, tenor and integrity of pain care in the US. We believe that narcoterrorism affects pain care, both by creating drug dependencies that divert national focus and resources, and by shifting the control, cost, availability and quality of narcotics provided to physicians and patients, from legitimate agencies to illicit organizations. This track will address the medico-legal and economic impact of narcoterrorism on pain care, examine key focal issues, and will put forward potential approaches toward resolving questions and problems that arise in a two-front "War on Pain" and "War on Drugs."

Another first will be a pediatric pain management track. This was specifically requested by attendees at last year’s conference, as was a regional pain syndromes track. There will also be a Scientific Assembly on Fibromyalgia and Sleep. The annual Pain Educators Forum (PEF) will consist of 2 days and 12 hours of clinical and educational courses.

Additionally, PAINWeek will have numerous Special Interest Sessions on health coaching, pain and depression, publication planning, pain clinical trials and many other topics. There will also be numerous Master Classes in neuropathic pain, orofacial pain, behavioral health, pain management in the military and optimizing patient adherence.

EC: Can you tell us about the faculty who will be participating in the 2010 conference?

DW: PAINWeek faculty includes Michael Clark, MD; Paul Christo, MD; Howad Heit, MD; Douglas Gourlay, MD; Geralyn Datz, PhD; James Giordano, PhD; Michael Schatman, PhD; Mary Lynn McPherson, PharmD; Wayne Nicholson, PharmD; Joseph Pergolizzi, MD; and Ronald Rapoport, MD. Our keynote address will be delivered by Lisa Sanders, MD, author of the popular “Diagnosis” column for The New York Times Magazine, and technical advisor to the acclaimed Fox television show, House M.D.

EC: Are you still accepting registrants, and how can people learn more about this conference?

DW: We are still accepting registrations. We are offering a special discounted registration to PainEDU members for $299 that will be extended until July 31, 2010 (current registration fee is $399 and will increase to $499). To register for the conference with this promotional code, please go to http://www.painweek.org/?pmc=PAINEDU or call toll-free 1-877-724-6933.