Pain Medicine

A pain medicine specialist utilises a multidisciplinary approach to address the psychological, behavioural and biological components of pain, with the goal of re-establishing functional capacity and quality of life. Pain medicine specialists all have primary speciality qualifications in other areas and are involved in a diverse range of clinical disciplines such as Anaesthetics, Psychiatry and General Practice.
Minimum Time to Completion: 7 years. At a minimum the initial 22 weeks of the core training stage must be undertaken continuously.

Details

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must have completed or be training towards a primary specialisation, from a list of approved of qualifications.

They must be a fellow or a trainee (completed at least 3 FTE years) of one of the following speciality programs: ANZCA, RACS, AFRM (RACP), RACP, RANZCP, RACGP, ACRRM, CICM, RANZOG, ACEM

The pain medicine training program is a two-year (88 week) post-specialist qualification that leads to fellowship of the Faculty of Pain Medicine of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists with the post nominals FFPMANZCA. At a minimum the initial 22 weeks of the core training stage must be undertaken continuously.

Distributed over two mandatory stages, each training stage comprises 44 weeks of clinical activity (one hospital employment year). The core training and practice development stages are directly relevant to the practice of the discipline of pain medicine and enable trainees to develop practical clinical skills in a supervised learning environment. Orientation videos are available online via Networks. Dates for key activities throughout the year are published on the website and in the training enewsletter. 

Core sections of the program:

  1. Conceptual basis of pain medicine: explores the underlying philosophical and conceptual frameworks of pain medicine
  2. Pain medicine roles in practice: emphasis a trainees development across all professional roles of the clinician
  3. Essential topic areas: Acute, chronic, visceral, spinal, cancer and headache/orofacial pain
  4. Optional topic areas: CL Psychiatry, Paediatric pain medicine, procedures in pain medicine
Annual Fee:

AUD $2,505

Exam Fee:

Fellowship examination fee: AUD $4,245

Long case examination fee: AUD $1,415

Trainee application fee:

AUD $2,585

Key Information

PGY Intake Year (earliest)

N/A

Training Duration (minimum)

2 years FTE

General Progression

Note that this represents one of the quickest routes to specialty training, and may not reflect additional HMO or unaccredited years of training.
Year 1
Internship
Year 2
Residency
Year 3
Specialty Training
Year 4
Specialty Training
Year 5
Commence Pain Medicine training (Qualifed specialist OR completed 3 years of an approved primary speciality)
Part Time Option: Yes
Last Updated: January 30, 2023
The information found in this portal has been painstakingly collated by JMOs for JMOs, and is intended as a career progression guide for every aspiring JMO. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and currency of the information presented on this website, but recent changes made by Specialist Medical Colleges may not be reflected in real time; please consult with the respective Specialist Medical College websites for the latest information. PMCV and JMO Victoria accepts no responsibility for inaccuracies, errors, or omissions. Please feel free to contact our team with suggestions or comments via the feedback form.

Pain Medicine

A pain medicine specialist utilises a multidisciplinary approach to address the psychological, behavioural and biological components of pain, with the goal of re-establishing functional capacity and quality of life. Pain medicine specialists all have primary speciality qualifications in other areas and are involved in a diverse range of clinical disciplines such as Anaesthetics, Psychiatry and General Practice.
Minimum Time to Completion: 7 years. At a minimum the initial 22 weeks of the core training stage must be undertaken continuously.

Details

How to Apply

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must have completed or be training towards a primary specialisation, from a list of approved of qualifications.

They must be a fellow or a trainee (completed at least 3 FTE years) of one of the following speciality programs: ANZCA, RACS, AFRM (RACP), RACP, RANZCP, RACGP, ACRRM, CICM, RANZOG, ACEM

Program Structure

The pain medicine training program is a two-year (88 week) post-specialist qualification that leads to fellowship of the Faculty of Pain Medicine of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists with the post nominals FFPMANZCA. At a minimum the initial 22 weeks of the core training stage must be undertaken continuously.

Distributed over two mandatory stages, each training stage comprises 44 weeks of clinical activity (one hospital employment year). The core training and practice development stages are directly relevant to the practice of the discipline of pain medicine and enable trainees to develop practical clinical skills in a supervised learning environment. Orientation videos are available online via Networks. Dates for key activities throughout the year are published on the website and in the training enewsletter. 

Core sections of the program:

  1. Conceptual basis of pain medicine: explores the underlying philosophical and conceptual frameworks of pain medicine
  2. Pain medicine roles in practice: emphasis a trainees development across all professional roles of the clinician
  3. Essential topic areas: Acute, chronic, visceral, spinal, cancer and headache/orofacial pain
  4. Optional topic areas: CL Psychiatry, Paediatric pain medicine, procedures in pain medicine

Fees

Annual Fee:

AUD $2,505

Exam Fee:

Fellowship examination fee: AUD $4,245

Long case examination fee: AUD $1,415

Trainee application fee:

AUD $2,585

Useful Resources / Courses / Conferences

Key Information

PGY Intake Year (earliest)

N/A

Training Duration (minimum)

2 years FTE

General Progression

Year 1
Internship
Year 2
Residency
Year 3
Specialty Training
Year 4
Specialty Training
Year 5
Commence Pain Medicine training (Qualifed specialist OR completed 3 years of an approved primary speciality)
Part Time Option: Yes
The information found in this portal has been painstakingly collated by JMOs for JMOs, and is intended as a career progression guide for every aspiring JMO. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and currency of the information presented on this website, but recent changes made by Specialist Medical Colleges may not be reflected in real time; please consult with the respective Specialist Medical College websites for the latest information. PMCV and JMO Victoria accepts no responsibility for inaccuracies, errors, or omissions. Please feel free to contact our team with suggestions or comments via the feedback form.