Clinical Management of Pain (Online Learning)
Provided by The University of Edinburgh Medical School
About the course
Overview
The Clinical Management of Pain programme aims to tackle the ‘real-world’ challenges faced by clinicians, with a strong focus and connection to patients and working in practice. It is a multidisciplinary programme that aims to develop the skills, knowledge and confidence of clinicians working with people experiencing pain using up-to-date evidence in a modern teaching environment.
Our part-time, fully online programme offers you a wide range of educational opportunities. With a flexible and broad selection of options, from single courses through to Masters of Science degrees, we offer you a unique opportunity to have direct contact with international students, lecturers, tutors and experts in pain management from across the world, to widen your understanding of pain in a variety of clinical contexts.
Developed for working clinicians
Our programme is delivered entirely online with no requirement to attend the University of Edinburgh campus. It was designed specifically for online delivery and learning, and, our online platform allows working clinicians from a range of professions, backgrounds and countries, the opportunity to learn together whilst meeting their personal and professional commitments.
High quality teaching
The University of Edinburgh has a growing portfolio of established and highly regarded online distance learning postgraduate programmes, with thousands of students currently taking advantage of this mode of education. Expert clinicians and educationalists who hold postgraduate qualifications in teaching and learning as well as recognition as Fellows or Senior Fellows of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) will teach and support your learning. Many of our core teaching staff have been recognised in national teaching awards and have received recognition by our students in the annual Edinburgh University Students Association (EUSA) teaching awards (with nominations for Best Support Staff, Best Tutor and Best Course).
Our programmes are affiliated with the University's Global Health Academy.
Our programme is structured around an academic year that consists of three 12-week terms. You will be expected to complete each level of the programme within the academic year with the Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma and MSc awards given at the point of exit from the University.
If the completion of a Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma or Masters degree does not align to your current goals, you have the option of enrolling for Postgraduate Professional Development (PPD) that would allow you to take a single course of study to enhance a particular element of your clinical practice.
Year One
In Year One, you will gain a solid, theoretical understanding of the biological, psychological and social concepts that drive, develop and maintain pain. Through the Year One compulsory courses, you will deepen your critical evaluation and analysis skills and develop your ability to link research to practice. You will also gain generic academic skills in academic writing, presentation giving and literature searching.
Year Two
Building on Year One courses, you will deepen your understanding and ability to critically analyse literature and reflect this in practice, build your inter and multidisciplinary working knowledge and further develop your transferrable academic skills. You will have some choice of courses, and you will be able to select courses that are of best value to your personal and professional development.
Year Three
In Year Three, you have several options available depending on your personal, professional and academic goals.
You may wish to select from a curated choice of elective courses - all focused on measuring impact in your clinical practice - or you may wish to focus on a project that identifies a real-world problem and is structured to allow you to reflect on the process and reproduce your methods for future work.
Teaching and assessment
During your time on the programme, you will have time to study independently and reflect on what you have learned and how you might apply your learning to your clinical practice. Each course in the programme consists of themed areas including a blend of:
- short online lectures and podcasts
- live lectures and guest speakers
- practical case studies
- directed readings
- discussion board activities
- group work
The interaction between students, clinicians and academics is promoted through facilitated discussion forums, which provide the opportunity for collaborative critical discourse and debate of current issues.
Assessments have been specifically designed to provide you with authentic learning opportunities and offer the ability to draw on your personal clinical experiences and expertise, regardless of where in the world you are located. Assessments and course tasks include, but are not limited to, written assignments, topic-focused short essays, and the creation of clinical resources.
Graduate Mandy More, explains:
There is the sense that what we are doing actually matters. Although the course is academic and wide-ranging, it is applicable at every stage.
Semester dates 2024-2025
These are key dates in the academic year, which vary slightly year to year. For your programme these are:
- Welcome Week: 09 – 15 September 2024
- Term 1: 16 September – 06 December 2024
- Term 2: 6 January – 28 March 2025
- Term 3: 14 April - 04 July 2025
Awards
For information on award options currently being offered, please see the links provided in the table below.
Find out more about compulsory and optional courses
We link to the latest information available. Please note that this may be for a previous academic year and should be considered indicative.
Enquire
| Start date | Venue | |
|---|---|---|
| 08 Sep 2025 | Distance learning | Book now |