A summer course explores pain management through affection

rose marquez

Chronic pain affects 26% of the Spanish population and continues to be one of the most debilitating and neglected conditions in the healthcare system. With the aim of continuing to break down taboos and update knowledge about its treatment, the Rey Juan Carlos University held the XNUMXth edition of the summer course "Pain is Treated with Love," which once again brings together healthcare professionals and patients to address pain from a multidisciplinary and humane perspective.

“This course offers us the opportunity to debunk some of the myths surrounding pain management, such as the belief that only terminally ill patients are referred there. Nothing could be further from the truth,” said Agustín Mendiola, a doctor in the Pain Unit at Puerta de Hierro Hospital. “There are many young people who suffer from chronic pain. It's a disease in its own right, and there's no cure for it, just as there is no cure for diabetes or hypertension. In reality, the only doctors who provide cures are oncologists and those who treat infectious diseases, because you either cure them or you die. The rest of us try to prevent the disease from progressing,” he added.

Throughout the course, innovative techniques are presented, but the importance of mental health in patients with persistent pain is also emphasized, without forgetting the necessary humanization of treatments. Emotions, support, and active listening take center stage in the sessions this year, emphasizing the need to integrate psychologists into pain units, a resource still scarce in public healthcare.

As in previous editions, the course features direct testimony from various patients, which is essential to highlighting how pain affects quality of life, personal relationships, and the workplace. The dialogue between professionals and those affected has reinforced the idea that only through collaboration and shared knowledge can we move toward a more effective and empathetic approach.

Organized by Anatomy Professor Francisco Gómez Esquer and Pharmacology Professor Carlos Goicochea, the course has established itself as a unique space in the academic landscape for reflection, training, and raising awareness about a reality that is often invisible, despite affecting a considerable portion of Spanish society.