Skip to content. Skip to navigation
Personal tools
  Members Area  

ANZCA

Sections
You are here: Home → FPM Home → Trainees → Training Program
Navigation
 
Document Actions

Training Program

Introduction
Prerequisites for Training
Structure of the Training Period
Training Units
Supervision of Training
Part Time Training
Assessment
Overview of Training Sequence 

Introduction

The specialty of Pain Medicine is concerned with the study of all aspects of pain, and clinically, with the evaluation, treatment and rehabilitation of persons with pain. The field spans three major clinical areas:

i) acute Pain - post operative, post-trauma, acute episodes of pain in 'medical conditions';

ii) cancer pain - pain directly due to tumour invasion or compression; pain related to diagnostic or therapeutic procedures; pain due to cancer treatment;

iii) persistent (chronic) pain - including over 200 conditions described in the IASP Taxonomy of Chronic Pain 2nd Ed, such as phantom limb pain, post-herpetic neuralgia, mechanical low back pain.

Fellowship of the Faculty of Pain Medicine has been introduced to provide senior trainees and Fellows of the participating bodies, or individuals with a specialist qualification acceptable to one of the five parent bodies, with recognition of completion of approved training in the discipline of Pain Medicine.

The pathway to Fellowship comprises entry qualification, training and examination. 

Prerequisites for Training

The Fellowship in Pain Medicine is an "add-on" specialist degree.

To commence accredited training in Pain Medicine you must:

(i) be a trainee or Fellow of one of the following Colleges:

      • Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists

      • Royal Australasian College of Surgeons

      • Royal Australasian College of Physicians

      • Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists

      • Australasian Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine (RACP)

or (ii) be a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners or Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners or a Faculty or Chapter of one of the Colleges above (other than AFRM).

or (iii) hold an Australian or New Zealand specialist qualification, experience and training acceptable to the Board.

or (iv) hold an international qualification that is considered to be substantially equivalent by the relevant College in Australia or New Zealand.

Structure of the Training Period

The training requirements vary (from one to three years) depending on primary qualification, previous exposure to Pain Medicine and experience.  Prospective trainees are advised to contact the Faculty Office for further information.

Training will normally commence during the training program of one of the participating colleges or faculty. When this option is taken concurrently with training towards a primary specialty, advice must be obtained from both the parent College/Faculty and the Faculty of Pain Medicine.

It is mandatory to undertake a prospectively approved structured training period in a Faculty-accredited Pain Management Unit.

The requirement is one year for category (i) above and two years for category (ii). Requirements for category (iii) and (iv) will be determined by the Assessor.

The Faculty provides trainees with a Trainee Support Kit (pdf icon 663 kB) which sets out the structure and aims of the training program in detail.

Accredited Training Units

A number of Pain Management Accredited Training Units throughout Australia and New Zealand have been accredited for Pain Medicine training.

Some Units offer trainees exposure to the full spectrum of clinical experience required for a complete Training Program; others may not.

A Unit which cannot offer a comprehensive experience “under one roof” will usually have links with other Units where the additional experiences can be obtained. 

The Supervisor of Training at the main Unit to which you are attached can help you plan your Training Program.

Supervision of Training

In approved Multidisciplinary Pain Units, a Supervisor of Training is appointed from the staff. Trainees should seek guidance from their Supervisor of Training and/or Director of the Unit in the first instance on all matters related to their training.

The Faculty regularly reviews those Units which it approves for training to ensure that there are high standards of teaching, supervision and clinical care.

Part-time Training

With prior approval from the Faculty and with the support of the Trainee’s Head of Department and the respective Hospital Administration, part time and/or interrupted training is possible under specific circumstances (see Regulation 4.4 and 4.5).

Assessment

Prior to admission to Fellowship of the Faculty of Pain Medicine, Trainees will have to demonstrate their knowledge, skills and attitudes by satisfactorily completing a number of Formative and Summative assessment tasks.

Formative Assessment:

  • A Log Book (pdf icon 33kB)documenting workload and experience to be kept for a total period of at least six months

  • Formal Quarterly In-Training Assessment Reports (pdf icon 48 kB) from the Supervisor of Training

Summative Assessment:

    • a written paper

    • a clinical long case

    • a series of short clinically-based interviews

    • three structured viva voce scenarios

 

Overview of Training Sequence

Activity Time Scale Fees†

Primary Vocational Training

Must be successfully completed prior to admission to Fellowship of FPM

Determined by, and payable to, the Primary Vocational College

Register for FPM Training††

Any time prior to commencing the structured training period

Once only Registration Fee plus Annual Training Fee

Undertake Structured FPM Training Period

Any time during or after primary vocational training

(covered by Annual Training Fee)

Submit quarterly In-Training Assessments

Quarterly during structured training period

(covered by Annual Training Fee)

Submit Case Report

To be submitted prior to completion of training

(covered by Annual Training Fee)

Register to sit Final FPM Examination

At lease 45 days prior to the Examination

Examination Fee 

Attend Pre-examination Short Course

At least 45 days prior to the Examination

Examination Fee

Final FPM Examination

Can be underaken during or after the structured period 

(covered above)

Admission to Fellowship of FPM

After successful completion of all training requirements, documentation and assessments

Annual Fellowship Fee 

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) 

Activities to be documented and submitted annually

(covered by Annual Fellowship Fee)

† Fees are GST-exempt except for the Pre-examination Short Course Fee and the Admission to Fellowship (Annual Subscription) 

†† Those registering early are required to pay only 10% of the Annual Training Fee with the remaining 90% deferred until the commencement of the structured training year. The annual fee for the non-structured year of training must be paid by 30 April in that year of training.  An annual Administration Fee of 25% of the Annual Training Fee is payable by 30 April where trainees have outstanding training requirements and wish to continue to be a Registered trainee.