Supporting Research in Pain Management for Veterans and Military Service Members
Supporting Research in Pain Management for Veterans and Military Service Members

Links

AcademyHealth

AcademyHealth works to improve health and the performance of the health system by supporting the production and use of evidence to inform policy and practice.

http://www.academyhealth.org

American Academy of Pain Medicine

The American Academy of Pain Medicine (AAPM) is the medical specialty society representing physicians and their team members practicing in the field of pain medicine. As a medical specialty society, the Academy is involved in education, training, advocacy, and research in the specialty of pain medicine.

http://www.painmed.org

ACTTION:  Optimizing trials, promoting collaborations, in the development of novel therapeutics

Effective July 1, 2011, IMMPACT consensus meetings, publications, and other activities will be conducted under the auspices of the Analgesic, Anesthetic, and Addiction Clinical Trial Translations, Innovations, Opportunities, and Networks (ACTTION) public-private partnership with the United States Food and Drug Administration. Link here for more information on the organization, resources, and publications. 

Learn more:  http://www.acttion.org

The American Chronic Pain Association

Since 1980, the ACPA has offered peer support and education in pain management skills to people with pain, family and friends, and health care professionals.

https://www.theacpa.org/

BMC Health Services Research

BMC Health Services Research is an open access, peer-reviewed journal that considers articles on all aspects of health services research, including delivery of care, management of health services, assessment of healthcare needs, measurement of outcomes, allocation of healthcare resources, evaluation of different health markets and health services organizations, international comparative analysis of health systems, health economics and the impact of health policies and regulations.

https://bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.com/

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

As the nation’s health protection agency, CDC saves lives and protects people from health threats. To accomplish our mission, CDC conducts critical science and provides health information that protects our nation against expensive and dangerous health threats, and responds when these arise.

https://www.cdc.gov/

Clinical Practice Guideline for Diagnosis and Treatment of Low Back Pain (LBP) (2017)

The guideline developed by the VA/DoD is intended to improve patient outcomes and local management of patients with low back pain. It describes the critical decision points in the diagnosis and Management of Low Back Pain (LBP) and provides clear and comprehensive evidence based recommendations. 

Learn more:  https://www.healthquality.va.gov/guidelines/pain/lbp/index.asp

Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG) Policy Guidance

VA Evidence-Based Practice works with the Department of Defense (DoD) to develop evidence-based practice guidelines to be used within the VA and DoD.

https://www.healthquality.va.gov/policy/index.asp

Combat Casualty Care Research Program (CCCRP)

The Combat Casualty Care Research Program seeks to drive medical innovation through development of knowledge and materiel solutions for the acute and early management of combat-related trauma; including point-of-injury, en route, and facility-based care.

https://cccrp.health.mil/

Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP)

The CDMRP orginated in 1992 via a Congressional appropriation to foster novel approaches to biomedical research in response to the expressed needs of its stakeholders — the American public, the military, and Congress.

https://cdmrp.health.mil/

CPG for Diagnosis and Treatment of Low Back Pain

 The guideline describes the critical decision points in the diagnosis and Management of Low Back Pain (LBP) and provides clear and comprehensive evidence based recommendations incorporating current information and practices for practitioners throughout the DoD and VA Health Care systems. This guideline was developed in collaboration with the American College of Physicians and the American Pain Society. The guideline is intended to improve patient outcomes and local management of patients with low back pain.
 

CPG for Management of Opioid Therapy (OT) for Chronic Pain (2017)

The guideline describes the critical decision points in the Management of Opioid Therapy (OT) for Chronic Pain and provides clear and comprehensive evidence based recommendations incorporating current information and practices for practitioners throughout the DoD and VA Health Care systems. The workgroup consensus statements are provided to minimize harm and increase patient safety in patients requiring opioid therapy.

Disclaimer:This Clinical Practice Guideline is intended for use only as a tool to assist a clinician/healthcare professional and should not be used to replace clinical judgment.

More information: https://www.healthquality.va.gov/guidelines/pain/cot/index.asp

Center for Rehabilitation Sciences Research (CRSR)

The Center for Rehabilitation Sciences Research (CRSR) was established to advance the rehabilitative care for service members with combat-related injuries, particularly those with orthopedic trauma, limb loss and neurological complications.  The center’s goal is to support synergistic research projects to optimize treatment strategies in order to promote the successsful return to duty and community reintegration of injured service members.  The center also provides a unique platform for fostering innovative research, incorporating clinical and technical advances in the rehabilitative care for service members.

https://www.http://www.crsr.org

Defense and Veterans Center for Integrative Pain Management (DVCIPM)

The Defense and Veterans Center for Integrative Pain Management (DVCIPM) is “to leverage the best available evidence, clinical expertise, and collaboration to develop and communicate recommendations in support of DoD pain management practice, education, and research.”  The primary goals and objectives of DVCIPM are to 1) facilitate the translation of evidence-based research into actionable clinical practice recommendations; 2) be a resource for pain education and practice; and 3) collaborate with DoD agencies, VHA, academic institutions and industry bring about clinical and translational research in the field of pain management.  DVCIPM has been the sole DoD organization focused entirely on pain management and has evolved from its original structure/focus of an Army team working primary on the battlefield trauma aspects of pain medicine, to the current tri-service/VHA, multidisciplinary effort working on application of a truly integrative approach to addressing challenges in pain management.

https://www.http://www.dvcipm.org

Health Care Systems Research Network (HCSRN)

The HCSRN brings together the research centers of many of the nation’s best and most innovative health care systems. Collectively, the HCSRN represents over 2,000 scientists and research staff with methodological and subject matter expertise from an array of disciplines including epidemiology, economics, disparities, outcomes and quality assessment, trials, genomics, and more.

https://www.http://www.hcsrn.org/en/

IMMPACT:  Improving our understanding of pain and its treatment

The Initiative on Methods, Measurement, and Pain Assessment in Clinical Trials (IMMPACT) was established in 2002 to develop consensus reviews and recommendations for improving the design, execution, and interpretation of clinical trials of treatments for pain. Link here for more information on this initiative, including a resource list of IMMPACT consensus recommendations, systematic reviews, and research studies.

http://www.immpact.org/index.html

Military Operational Medicine Research Program (MOMRP)

The mission of the Military Operational Medicine Research Program (MOMRP) is to develop effective biomedical countermeasures against operational stressors and to prevent physical and psychological injuries during training and operations in order to maximize the health, readiness and performance of Service members and their Families.

https://momrp.health.mil

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine produce groundbreaking reports that have helped shape sound policies, inform public opinion, and advance the pursuit of science, engineering, and medicine.

http://www.nationalacademies.org/

NIH HEAL Initiative

In April 2018, NIH launched the HEAL (Helping to End Addiction Long-term) Initiative, an aggressive, trans-agency effort to speed scientific solutions to stem the national opioid public health crisis. This Initiative will build on extensive, well-established NIH research, including basic science of the complex neurological pathways involved in pain and addiction, implementation science to develop and test treatment models, and research to integrate behavioral interventions with Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder (OUD).

https://www.nih.gov/research-training/medical-research-initiatives/heal-initiative

For HEAL Initiative funding announcements and opportunities, click here

NIH Pain Consortium

The NIH Pain Consortium was established to enhance pain research and promote collaboration among researchers across the many NIH Institutes and Centers that have programs and activities addressing pain.

https://www.painconsortium.nih.gov/

Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force

The Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force was established to propose updates to best practices and issue recommendations that address gaps or inconsistencies for managing chronic and acute pain. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is overseeing this effort with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Department of Defense.

https://www.hhs.gov/opioids/prevention/pain-management-options/index.html

Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force Report

The Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force Report: Updates, Gaps, Inconsistencies, and Recommendations

Final Report, May 2019

Pain Management Best Practices PDF

PCORI – Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute

PCORI’s mission is to help people make informed healthcare decisions, and improve healthcare delivery and outcomes, by producing and promoting high-integrity, evidence-based information that comes from research guided by patients, caregivers, and the broader healthcare community.

https://www.pcori.org

Rethinking Clinical Trials:  A Living Textbook of Pragmatic Clinical Trials

The Mission of the NIH Collaboratory of Pragmatic Clinical Trials is to “strengthen the national capacity to implement cost-effective large-scale research studies that engage healthcare delivery organizations as research partners.”

For more information on this groundbreaking initiative click here:  http://rethinkingclinicaltrials.org

Translational Research Institute for Pain in Later Life (TRIPLL)

The Translational Research Institute for Pain in Later Life (TRIPLL) is an NIA funded Edward R. Roybal center with a focus on chronic pain. TRIPLL was established in response to the plight of millions of older adults experiencing persistent pain, a costly and frequently disabling disorder in later life. Effective solutions to the problem of later-life pain require moving basic behavioral and social science and medical research findings more rapidly into programs, practices and policies targeting older adults. TRIPLL supports translational research in aging in the NYC area.

https://tripll.org/

VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG)

The Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense Health Care Systems have long been identified as leaders in clinical practice guideline development. This landing page is a valuable resource for best practices and other resources:

  https://www.healthquality.va.gov/index.asp

VA Electronic Health Record Modernization (EHRM) History

In May 2018, VA awarded Cerner a contract to replace their current EHR systems with the commercial-off-the-shelf solution – Cerner Millennium® – currently being deployed by the Department of Defense (DoD). The Electronic Health Record Modernization (EHRM) initiative will leverage an existing commercial solution to achieve interoperability within VA, with DoD, and with community care providers.

https://digital.va.gov/ehr-modernization/

Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Pain Management

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Pain Management homepage providing pain management resources for Veterans, Veterans’ family members, caregivers, VA administrators, clinicians, and researchers.

https://www.va.gov/painmanagement/