The Pain Medicine Training Program provides a variety of formal and informal educational opportunities for its members. We believe strongly that diversity in the pursuit of education allows our fellows to mature in both their professional and personal lives.

Our didactic offerings include:

• Anesthesiology Morning Conferences
• Pain Medicine Lecture Series
• M&M Conferences
• Journal Clubs
• Research Conferences
• Directed Reading
• Computer Resources
• UNC Health Sciences Library

Lecture Series

• Several departmental conferences are scheduled each week for Residents, Faculty and Staff. Departmental Grand Rounds is held every Wednesday from 7:00am-8:00am.
• The Pain Medicine Lecture Series is held weekly on Tuesdays, from 7:00am-8:00am at the UNC Spine Center.
• The fellows are encouraged to attend departmental conferences and are required to attend the Pain Medicine Lecture Series.

Research Conferences

Research Conferences are held weekly in the Division of Research.

Journal Clubs

Pain specific Journal Clubs are held monthly as an evening program. The Department of Anesthesiology also holds regular journal club sessions.

Computer Resources

All fellows have ready access to intradepartmental, campus-wide and Internet computer facilities to assist with literature searches, research activities, lecture presentations, and self-paced programmed education. Our library maintains an up-to-date collection of computer assisted interactive educational software programs. Computer facilities are available 24 hours a day to allow fellows free access to the latest methods of education in anesthesia. The department has a staff of computer specialists with expertise in educational software, word processing, data storage and retrieval, statistical analysis, and multimedia presentation techniques. Fellows are encouraged to utilize these facilities to assist in research endeavors and to supplement the more traditional didactic and clinically based educational experiences.

Library

A specialty pain library is maintained at the UNC Pain Management Center. Procedural manuals and guidelines are available at the Interventional Clinic as well. Department network resources include an up-to-date literature reference file with electronic copies of key pain-related articles. In addition, the library of the Department of Anesthesiology provides excellent educational resources for residents, fellows, faculty, and staff. The library includes computer workstations with online training software. The library is available for the department use only and is always open for study and research. The Health Sciences Library is located in close proximity to the UNC hospitals complex. The library contains 333,493 total volumes and receives 4,116 serial titles. Electronic journals and books and databases such as PubMed, CINAHL, ISI Citation Databases, BIOSIS, PsychINFO, eFacts, and Lexi-Comp are available anywhere on campus. Faculty, staff, and students can access almost all electronic resources from home. A total renovation of the library building was completed in early 2005, adding high end technology options and group study spaces.