Pain Medicine
The Faculty of Pain Medicine in conjunction with the CAI is responsible for training in Pain Medicine. The Faculty conducts year long basic training (Special Interest Year) and advanced training for completion of CCST in Anaesthesia. To be eligible to practice as a full time Consultant in Pain Medicine the Fellowship in Pain Medicine Examinations.
Key Dates
2025 Dates To Be Confirmed
| Application Opening Date | Application Closing Date | Exam Date | Venue | Exam |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Apply for Examination
Step 1:
Check if you are eligible to sit exam. You must:
- Have or be eligible for full or limited registration with the Irish Medical Council, GMC or equivalent.
- Have completed Fellowship examination in Anaesthesia or equivalent
- Have completed the appropriate amount of training
Step 2:
Prepare for Examination
Fellowship in Pain Medicine (a) Multiple choice questions (MCQ) – comprising 30 questions with 5 stems (b) Single Best Answer (SBA) – comprising 20 questions (c) Viva 1 – Each will be conducted over a 25-minute period each with two examiners on clinical/audit/professionalism (d) Viva 2 – Each will be conducted over a 25-minute period each with two examiners on equipment/procedures (e) Clinical case Following 30 minutes of assessment of a patient by the candidate, two examiners will examine the candidate for a further 30 minutes. The examination may include some short minor cases at the discretion of the examiners.
This is a consultant led course covering revision on the core topics and viva practice. Fee: €190.00 Location: Online. Course Date: TBC Course Application: Download course application form Key Contact: exams@coa.ie
Reading Materials Books Evidence based interventional pain practice: According to Clinical Diagnoses (Van Zundert): easy to read and very accessible. ANZCA Acute Pain Guidelines Pain Management (Waldman): More info but still easy to read. Textbook of Pain (Wall and Melzack): Very heavy, more for reference. Guidelines and Reviews (on the relevant websites) Cochrane (Pain and Palliative Care Section) NICE BPS (British Pain Society) International Headache Society guidelines Journals BJA Education ‐ reviews of pain topics Pain (IASP Biennial Reviews) ‐ most recent 2016 Neuromodulation ‐ journal guidelines and reviews on neurostimulation and intrathecal therapy Websites IASP: good review articles, definitions, and guidelines: http://www.iasp‐ pain.org/Pain:ClinicalUpdates?navItemNumber=571 British Pain Society: guidelines. https://www.britishpainsociety.org/british‐pain‐society‐ publications/professional‐publications/ http://emcrit.org/
Examinations Contact: For more information please contact: exams@coa.ie.