Lumina Medical Academy: Online medical education for enhanced patient outcomes.
Millions of people around the world live with specific acute, chronic and cancer-related pain. Almost one in five South African adults have chronic pain, and while there is limited data around pain in the country, and Africa as a whole, the global data speak volumes.
In 2016, 3bn people suffered from primary headache conditions, migraines affect one in 10 people worldwide, approximately 1.71bn people worldwide live with musculoskeletal (MSK) diseases – major contributors to loss of productivity, pain and disability, with low back pain being the single leading cause of disability in 160 countries. The list goes on.
Considering the volume of people living with pain, the fact that the average time spent on pain care education in medical schools is 15 hours comes as somewhat of a shock.
Published in 2018, Systematic Review of Pain Medicine Content, Teaching and Assessment in Medical School Curricula Internationally highlighted that pain medicine education at medical schools internationally does not adequately respond to societal needs in terms of the prevalence and public health impact of inadequately managed pain.
The paper also revealed that 96% of medical schools in the UK and USA, and nearly 80% of medical schools in Europe had no compulsory dedicated teaching in pain medicine.
Pain is driving the opioid epidemic. Chronic pain management in medical education: a disastrous omission, published in 2017, says that due to the lack of education and exposure to treating chronic pain disorders, the use of opioids for the alleviation of pain has been prioritised rather than addressing its source, prevention and management.
A study undertaken between 2012 and 2017 showed South Africa’s sharp increase in treatment admission trends for opioids, despite beliefs that rates of opioid use remain low and do not represent a major problem. Over the five-year period, there was an increase in the proportion of opioid related disorders (OUD) treatment admissions.
Public health interventions, evidence-based harm reduction approaches and improving access to treatment are among the interventions urgently needed to reduce the harms associated with the increased use of opioids in this country.
Key lessons coming out of the research around medical education and pain management:
• The curricula related to pain management needs to be expanded across all educational platforms.
• A shift from biopsychosocial to socio-psychobiological education is required.
• Chronic pain management requires a multidisciplinary and multi-professional approach.
These are key lessons, in which Lumina believes.
We know that pain is under-indexed in medical education. It simply does not get the attention it requires, leading to misdiagnosis and incorrect treatment.
Lumina is on a mission to change that. We present the knowledge healthcare providers need to understand and treat pain-related conditions in a single location. Lumina’s self-directed courses, diagnostic tools, condition-specific treatment programmes, and community, have all been created to change the face of pain management.
The Lumina Medical Academy
The Lumina Medical Academy presents digital learning and continuous professional development focused on enhancing diagnostics, clinical steps, and modalities to improve patient outcomes.
Content is co-created by a collaborative of independent and internationally recognised experts and specialists, and developed in such a way that they can be done at one's own pace.
The Academy acts as an up-to-date reference tool for those wanting to expand their knowledge and stay abreast of the latest verified information and innovation from the pain management field. It is an online tool that enables healthcare providers to access our courses, case studies journals, webinars, and more.
• Online courses
• Online certified care plans
• Practical assessments and workshops
• Procedural training
• Continuous medical education
• Vetted resources
• Clinical research papers
Lumina Medical Academy courses currently available
A total of 81.5% of primary care residents recognise their undergraduate pain management training as being inadequate, leaving them ill-prepared to manage chronic pain effectively.
At Lumina, we work alongside some of the most respected names in pain management to develop online training to facilitate improved patient outcomes. You can now qualify for CPD Points in South Africa by completing our full and short courses.
• The Lumina Primary Headaches Course
(25 CPD Points) – Developed by executive editor Professor André Boezaart MD, PhD, this 20-hour course is a self-directed learning experience that covers understanding, treating and continuous care for primary headaches.
• The Lumina Fibromyalgia Course
(25 CPD Points) – Developed by executive editor Dr Anna Woodbury MD, MSCR, CAc, the programme covers three modules with knowledge checks and exams for certifications; the 20-hour course has been designed for primary healthcare providers, pain specialists, neurologists and nurses.
• The Lumina PPGB Short Course
(2 CPD Points) – The course will take you one-two hours to complete and has been designed to help you master the theory of the PPGB procedure (ultrasound-guided percutaneous suprazygomatic pterygopalatine ganglion block).
• The Lumina nVNS Short course
(2 CPD Points) – This short course will take you one-two hours to complete and covers the anatomy involved in nVNS and explores the access to central nervous system structures and the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway that the vagus nerve offers us.
“The industry is constantly evolving, and healthcare providers must continuously update their skills and knowledge to provide the best care to their patients. That is why I believe the preskilling, reskilling and upskilling of healthcare providers to stay current in their field is important.” – David Loubser, Lumina chief executive officer
Lumina is offering a free three-month subscription to the Lumina Medical Academy to Juta MedicalBrief readers.