Internaonal Pain Foundaon—47
“In March 2019
Health Canada created
the Canadian Pain
Task Force to help
the Government of
Canada better understand
and address
the needs of Canadians
who live with
pain.”
With growing needs for those
with chronic pain, this task force
will be responsible for laying
down the foundation needed in
order to take action. This is a huge
positive for those of us who are
living with pain in this country!
Over a three year period the task
force has been mandated to assess
how chronic pain is currently addressed
and treated here in our
country. After that the second part
will be for the task force to identify
best practices, and potential
areas for improvement for the prevention
and management of
chronic pain. The last part of what
they will be responsible for is collaborate
with key stakeholders,
including the chronic pain community,
federal, provincial, and
territorial governments, health
professionals, researchers, and
Indigenous populations for the
prevention and management of
chronic pain.
Health Canada and the Task Force
are committed to hearing the voices
of those living with chronic
pain. This commitment is reflected
directly in the Task Force by
including an advocate for people
living with pain as well as a clinician.
The best part in all of this is
that over the next year the Task
Force will provide opportunity for
Canadians to provide their input
as well. They will have the opportunity
to identify best practices
and an approved approach to the
prevention and management of
chronic pain.
“Hope is seeing light
in spite of being
surrounded by
darkness”
There is so much darkness that
surrounds us when it comes to
living with chronic pain. Yet all
we need to do is look a little harder
all around us to see that there is
just as many good things going on
around us as well. Society however
trains our eyes on all the things
that are negative. Therefore this
tends to be what we focus on, and
in turn we take on an attitude to
fit. We have so many great things
starting to happen when it comes
to the care that the chronic pain
patients receive in this country.
As the National Pain Strategy is
implemented over the coming
years we will see more ground
breaking research and treatments
being made available from the
world class specialists that serve
the Canadian population.
This isn’t an overly powerful message
that I have for you today.
Rather it’s a pretty simple one that
drives home a pretty simple message.
That message is that sometimes
we need to look a little
harder in order to see the things
that bring us hope. They are all
around us but the question I have
for you is this. Are you going to
choose to see all the good things
that are going on all around
you?
About the author: Ross McCreery is a
patient/ advocate creating awareness
and change for those of us who live with
chronic pain. In 2006 he was diagnosed
with the rare disease called CRPS
(Complex Regional Pain Syndrome) that
has no cure and very few treatments for
the debilitating chronic pain of which he
suffers. Ross is the founder of CRPS
Awareness Day in Saskatchewan which
is an initiative designed to educate and
raise awareness for the disease. Ross
also sits on the board of directors for the
Sask Pain Foundation in a client/ advocate
representative roll. Along with these
endeavors he works with the Rare Disease
Foundation and has launched their
first Adult Peer-to-Peer Resource Group.