Requirements for an interdisciplinary lecture on pain. Results from a survey of medical students

BACKGROUND: Pain therapy is not an obligatory subject of undergraduate medical education in Germany. METHODS: In order to evaluate the expectations of undergraduate medical students regarding pain therapy as a lecture, a questionnaire was distributed to students visiting a faculty lecture on pain therapy. RESULTS: The main topics voted by the students as very interesting to them were pain syndromes such as low back pain, headache, and cancer pain. Furthermore, pharmacotherapy and the structure of pain therapy units were voted as interesting. Female students were significantly more interested in pain problems of specific patient groups (women, children, older patients, HIV-infected patients). Case reports on paper or with patient presentations were regarded as the most important didactic elements of such lectures. CONCLUSIONS: An analysis of the published undergraduate curricula in pain therapy revealed that the curriculum of the IASP and of the EFIC are too long and too theoretical, respectively. The curriculum of the DGSS meets many expectations of the students in this survey. Concepts of pain therapy education in undergraduate medical schools should consider the wishes of students regarding knowledge of pain syndromes and didactic methods.