US Association for the Study of Pain Annual Scientific Meeting

疼痛仍然是一个重要的卫生保健问题，因为它的普遍性和对这些人的影响

Pain continues to be a significant health care problem because of its prevalence, its impact on those who suffer, and the absence of consistently effective therapeutic options devoid of deleterious consequences. These issues will only be compounded with the aging of the US population and the increased incidence of pain in those over 60 years old. Any progress in addressing this growing problem will take a concerted effort from the basic scientists struggling to understand pain mechanisms to the clinicians struggling to manage pain in their patients with limited tools and resources. It will also take a sustained effort that includes those already working to address this problem, as well as subsequent generations of pain scientists. The US Association for the Study of Pain (USASP) was formed to address these issues and continues to develop ways of doing so. One of their solutions is an annual scientific meeting organized to facilitate career development and mentoring of pain scientists and health care providers with a focus on early career scholars, facilitate dialog among pain scientists and clinicians within and between disciplines or areas of study, and disseminate important research findings. To maximize the impact of efforts to achieve these goals, the USASP and the scientific meeting are organized around principles of diversity, equity and inclusion, where all interested in addressing the complex problem of pain are welcomed to participate. The present application is to secure support for trainees to attend the USASP annual scientific meetings from 2022 to 2026, starting with the May, 2022 meeting in Cincinnati, OH. Consistent with the broader goals of the USASP for the scientific meeting, the Specific Aims of this proposal are to 1) Provide a national forum for conference attendees to discuss pain research findings that shape the direction of the field, 2) Foster interdisciplinary dialogue and collaboration between researchers representing multiple pain science disciplines in to develop innovative translational strategies to address current challenges in pain research, and 3) Enhance communication between pain science stakeholders (researchers, policy makers, clinicians, and patients) and both junior and senior researchers to provide mentoring and build bridges between different pain science communities. As the connections made early in a career pay dividends over the long term, yearly support for 31 trainees to participate in these conferences will provide a foundation for safe and effective pain management in the future.