Pain Medicine
The Arnold Pain Management Center at BIDMC provides comprehensive diagnostic and treatment plans for patients with acute and chronic pain. A multidisciplinary approach is used to provide optimal care for complex patients. Residents will gain experience in doing commonly utilized invasive procedures including epidural steroid injections, trigger point injections, selective nerve root blocks, placement of spinal cord stimulators and implanted epidurals. Residents participate in the daily, formal didactic sessions during their pain rotation. Two months on the pain service are completed during the first 2 years of residency, with an option to complete up to an additional 6 months as a CA-3.
Resident Perspective
The pain rotation is divided the acute pain service and the chronic pain service. The acute pain service is mainly concerned with managing pain in the immediate post-op period, with an emphasis on management of epidurals, PCA, and IV infusions. You take pager call from home during the acute pain service (APS) rotation. Most calls for APS service can be managed from home, occasionally you will come into the hospital to assess a patient. You work 2 weekends during the pain rotation month, which mainly involves rounding on the pain service patients. On the chronic pain service you work in the pain clinic and participate in procedures. Interested residents can also learn acupuncture, which is taught by a certified acupuncture specialist.