Buildings and landmarks across the country are lighting up in blue in honor of Pain Awareness Month as part of U.S. Pain’s “Shine Blue for Pain” initiative. Blue is the designated color for pain awareness.
“We are so grateful to all of the volunteers who helped reach out to these locations and request their participation,” says Nicole Hemmenway, Interim CEO of U.S. Pain Foundation. “Special thanks goes to our dedicated team member, Michele Rice, who coordinated everyone’s efforts and reached out to a number of landmarks.”
U.S. Pain Foundation has partnered with Health Union — which offers health-focused online communities and news content — to conduct a survey, “Chronic Pain In America 2019.” The goal? To get a better understanding of how people with chronic health conditions experience pain, how they navigate the health care system, and what there experiences are managing and treating chronic pain.
On Tuesday, Sept. 17, U.S. Pain is hosting a candid conversation with Victoria Suan, director of the award-winning documentary film, Becoming Incurable.
Released earlier this year, Becoming Incurable explores the transformation of three individuals who became diagnosed with painful, chronic, incurable illnesses. Suan was inspired to create the movie after seeing the struggles faced by her cousin, Leo, who lives with severe dystonia.
In August, we put out the call for videos stories from our community. The stories we received were incredibly courageous, inspiring, and raw. The patients who shared about their experiences come from all walks of life. They were of all ages, all ethnicities, with all types of pain, from all across the country–and even around the world.
In honor of Pain Awareness Month and our campaign theme, #LetsTalkAboutPain, we’re sharing one video story each day.
National Director of Policy and Advocacy Cindy Steinberg will speak at a Sept. 20 public meeting at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). At this meeting, CMS is slated to present its Action Plan to address the opioid crisis and pain management, called for in Section 6032 of the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities (SUPPORT) Act passed by Congress in 2018.
U.S. Pain Foundation is excited to announce that Thrive Tape is presenting sponsor for Pain Awareness Month 2019. Thrive Tape is introducing a new and innovative kinesiology tape that includes the benefits of far infrared. Kinesiology tape is elasticized tape that can help improve mobility and support joints, muscles, and tendons.
Unlike other kinesiology tapes, however, where proper taping technique is crucial, with Thrive Tape one only needs to apply the tape to the area of discomfort to receive the benefits. Thrive Tape is unique in that it includes a blend of minerals and ceramic powder, which are silkscreened onto the tape and reflect far infrared. (Far infrared is a form of light that cannot be seen, but is experienced by the body as radiant heat.) The tape is also latex-free and hypoallergenic, as well as sweat-resistant and waterproof. (To learn more about U.S. Pain Board Member Ellen Lenox Smith’s positive experience with the tape, click here.)
On Aug. 7, a group of three U.S. Pain Foundation representatives with osteoarthritis (OA) and one caregiver joined Director of State Advocacy & Alliance Development Shaina Smith to speak about the challenges of the disease before senior officials within the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The meeting was held at the FDA in Silver Spring, MD.
Earlier this year, U.S. Pain had requested the FDA’s Patient Affairs division host a patient listening session focusing on the unmet needs of patients with OA, which affects more than 30 million Americans. The FDA accepted the request, with 24 officials attending the listening session in-person and via conference call.
U.S. Pain Foundation recently led a group of 24 pain patient and professional organizations in sending a joint letter to U.S. Senators Lamar Alexander and Patty Murray, who lead the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, requesting that the committee hold a hearing on the final report of the Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Taskforce.
The task force, comprised of 29 pain experts, was mandated by Congress to create recommendations to improve pain care while alleviating the opioid crisis in America. Cindy Steinberg, National Director of Policy and Advocacy for the U.S. Pain Foundation, was the only patient and patient group representative on the task force.
At U.S. Pain Foundation, we deeply believe in the power of sharing patient stories. Talking about our experiences with pain helps us to educate others, to create change, and to offer hope. That’s why our theme for Pain Awareness Month 2019, which begins Sunday, is #LetsTalkAboutPain.
This year, we have dozens of opportunities for you to help bring pain to the forefront of public conversations, ranging from our daily storyathon to social media giveaways to weekly events.