Stage 1 (Core) pain training

What is Stage 1 Pain Medicine training?

Pain Training is one of the 14 domains of learning with the RCoA 2021 Anaesthetic curriculum. Stage 1 Pain Training is aimed at providing a comprehensive introduction to Pain Medicine reflected in 'generalist' anaesthetic practice, improving your approach to the management of pain in the perioperative period.

Your Stage 1 Pain module will improve your understanding of:

• the assessment of patients with acute, chronic, acute on chronic, and cancer pain
• the biopsychosocial model of pain
• the pharmacotherapy management of pain
• the use of equipment for pain management
• multi-professional and multi-disciplinary team working.

Why do I need Stage 1 Pain training?

Managing pain is a key anaesthetic skill. The aspiring anaesthetist must develop wide-ranging knowledge, be proficient in a number of technical and nontechnical skills, and must understand how to best apply these abilities safely in different contexts.

When do I complete Stage 1 Pain training?

Stage 1 is the first 3 years of the anaesthetics training programme, from CT1 to CT3. Stage 1 is commenced on successful recruitment to core training. Evidence for Stage 1 Pain training can be accumulated the three years of training.

Completing Stage 1 Pain training

This requires completion of a HALO by your Faculty Tutor in Pain Medicine or Regional Advisor in Pain Medicine.

Completion of a HALO requires the following evidence:

1. supervised learning events (ACEX, ALMAT, A-QIPAT, CBD, DOPS) to suggest level of supervision
2. personal activities
3. personal reflections
4. multiple trainer report(s) that include Pain.

Counting experience from outside the training programme towards a CCT

Anaesthetists joining the training programme may be able to have some of their prior UK experience count towards their CCT. RCoA guidance on this process can be found here.