VA/DoD Shared Interest Group
Purpose
The focus of the VA/DoD SIG is to support advances in clinical care, education, research, and advocacy for patients with pain who are military service members and veterans.
Mission
The mission of the VA/DoD SIG is to address the professional interests of clinicians and investigators from numerous disciplines involved in the care of patients with pain who are military personnel, veterans, and their family members. These needs include clinical care, education, research, and advocacy related to this population. The Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Department of Defense (DoD), and numerous community agencies and healthcare entities are tasked with providing services to this population and, at the forefront, is the issue of pain and its comorbidities. Large, integrated healthcare systems, such as VHA and DoD, offer particularly rich settings for the study of the epidemiology of pain, the presence, effect, and implementation of pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatments for pain, and potential disparities in pain identification and treatment. Activities for the SIG include education within the American Pain Society, outreach to other professional societies with related interests (e.g., Society of General Internal Medicine; Society of Behavioral Medicine; VHA Health Services Research and Development), opportunities for collaboration among members and with other SIGs, dissemination of research results to VHA, DoD, and community organizations, as well as updates and discussions regarding pain care policy.
Leadership
Co-chair: Mary Driscoll
Co-chair: Laura Wandner, PhD
Communication Tool
Membership in the VA/DoD SIG allows you the benefit of participating in an APS-sponsored Listserv. This forum offers community members an exchange for sharing best practices, asking questions, offering helpful information, and networking. To post a message to all members, send an e-mail to apsmilitarysig@listserve.com
Save the Date
2019 Scientific Meeting
Milwaukee, WI
April 3-6
Additional Resources
To join this SIG, contact the APS National Office at list@americanpainsociety.org.
Basic Science | Clinical Trials | Complementary and Alternative Medicine | Ethics | Genetics and Pain | Geriatric Pain | Measurement of Pain and Its Impact | VA/DoD | Nursing | Pain and Disparities | Pain Education | Pain in Infants, Children, and Adolescents | Pain Rehabilitation | Primary Care | Psychosocial Research | Pain in Sickle Cell Disease
