Publications
APS Bulletin • Volume 16, Number 2, 2006
President’s Message
The Future of APS Is Now
Dennis C. Turk, PhD, Immediate Past President
The Past
I have just returned from APS’s extremely successful Annual Meeting in San Antonio, and I am renewed and invigorated.
I have had the honor and privilege to serve as the president for the past 2 years. There are too many people to thank for the success that we have achieved during my tenure, but any failures must reside with me. Nothing can be accomplished without a great deal of commitment from volunteers—the board, committee and task force chairs, and members. To all of you, please accept my sincerest gratitude; the success of our organization is indebted to you. In addition to the volunteers there is the professional staff who guide the day-to-day operations of our large and diverse society—AMC, our professional management company, has provided tremendous support carrying out the mandate of the board. Without their efforts, none of the many activities that make up APS would have been moved into action.
There are a few people that I have to single out and acknowledge here and many more I would like to if space permitted. Cathy Underwood, our Executive Director, has managed the day-to-day operations of APS with a careful and dedicated eye. She also was instrumental in the strategic planning process that you will learn about below. Jerry Gebhardt, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Pain, has continued to guide the journal and expanded its impact making it one of the premier journals in the field in just a few years’ time. Peter Vicente, Editor-in-Chief of the APS Bulletin, was the driving force behind the Bulletin since its inception and has continued to serve as editor throughout my tenure. Peter has stepped down as editor and we all owe him a debt of gratitude for creating such an outstanding vehicle for communicating among members. Greg Terman, 2006 Scientific Program Committee Chair, has devoted incalculable hours to developing an outstanding program that was designed to meet the needs of as many members as possible. The result of this commitment was obvious to all who attended the meeting. Chris Miaskowski, Chair of the Dream No Smalls Dreams Campaign, through sheer energy and force of will has almost single-handedly launched this successful initiative. There is much more to do and Chris is up to the task and there appears to be no end to her devotion to our society. Finally, incoming president, Judy Paice, has been a most thoughtful and dependable collaborator during my tenure first as secretary and then president-elect. I have no question that Judy will make us all proud as she leads our Society into the future.
During the meeting in San Antonio, Past-President Chris Miaskowski and I shared with those in attendance the newly approved mission statement and vision of APS. We also discussed the strategic plan for the next 3 years and the status of the Dream No Small Dreams Campaign. In this column, I will summarize the board’s actions in these matters.
The Future
APS was founded more than 28 years ago. As we look to the future, we need to consider whether we wish to be followers and adaptors or leaders and shapers. The Board agreed that this is the time to revisit our Society’s core values, societal vision, and mission statement and to devise a strategic plan that is consistent with these and the leadership role we wish to continue. For the past 18 months, the board has gone through an extensive process of self-evaluation, reflecting on the past and directions for the future.
The core values of any organization consist of a set of beliefs that form its basic philosophy, spirit, and driving force for all thinking, decision making, and actions. As the board proceeded, we agreed that the core values of APS are: leadership (in research, education, practice, and policy), integrity, objectivity, integration, diversity, and interdisciplinary emphasis. These have not changed since our founding and they will carry us forward into the future.
Tremendous advances in knowledge have taken place since the founding of APS. With new information about pain and the mechanisms involved—anatomy, neurophysiology, neurochemistry, and psychology—comes an enlightened vision, a vision to which we can aspire.
A world where pain prevention and relief are available to all people!
Our mission supports our core values and attainment of our lofty vision. To accomplish this vision, the board crafted a revised mission statement. First it reiterates who we are, “a multidisciplinary community that brings together a diverse group of scientists, clinicians, and other professionals” and what we hope to achieve “to increase the knowledge of pain and transform public policy and clinical practice to prevent or relieve pain-related suffering.” I believe our vision exemplifies why members join APS. Our new mission statement supports APS’s position as a leader and shaper; note the following key phrases: “multidisciplinary community,” “transform public policy and practice,” “prevent or relive pain-related suffering.”
Core values and a mission statement on their own cannot move us toward our vision of prevention and relief of pain-related suffering for all. To that end, the board crafted an ambitious strategic plan, outlined below, which holds tremendous promise. The initiatives are organized into four broad categories.
Policy and Advocacy
- Develop a proactive communication strategy to engage with policy and decision makers as well as the public.
- Develop an ongoing presence to interact with decision makers being proactive rather than reactive.
- Collaborate on a regulatory summit to address balancing the roles of clinicians and law enforcement in pain treatment
Research
- Increase funding for “young investigator” grants.
- Advocate for increased NIH funding for pain research.
- Create a task force on translational research.
Education
- Expand new investigator and clinician programs.
- Create APS lecture series communicating advances in our science and practice to relevant organizations.
Practice
- Develop a set of electronic versions of the Analgesic Guide taking advantage of new and advanced technologies.
- Create a “Center of Excellence in Pain Management” program to acknowledge best practices bringing visibility to outstanding programs.
You will be hearing more about these initiatives over the next 3 years. These activities will not replace the many ongoing APS initiatives, but will complement them.
Reviewing these intitiatives is inspiring and at times breath-taking. There are at least two things that are required to move us toward our vision—money and human resources. Chris Miaskowski is spearheading the Dream No Small Dreams Campaign in an effort to obtain the necessary financial resources. Many of you have already contributed your support to this campaign as have staff members and the private industry. Much more can be done to expand these resources and will be an important target as we attempt to fulfill our strategic plan. Equally important is human resources. That’s you and me. The strategic plan requires people to carry out the initiatives I enumerated. It cannot and will not be successful unless each member becomes involved and commits time and energy to the process.
As I step down as president, I humbly look back at what we have accomplished during my tenure with satisfaction, but I look forward to the future with enthusiasm and keen anticipation. The future of APS is now!