The AMN – P&A:
Where Did It Come From & Where Is it Going?
Where Did It Start?
2008
The AMN – P&A started life as a pilot project in the South Shore
District Health Authority. It was conceived as a way to bring pain and
Addiction care from the ivory tower to the community. Initially termed a
tongue twisting Nova Scotia Chronic Pain Collaborative Care Network
(NSCPCCN), funding came from two sources:
1) The Nova Scotia Department of Health as part of the Nova Scotia Chronic Pain Initiative, and
2) The Canadian Anesthesiologists Society David A. Sheridan New
Investigator Award
The Program
The AMN–P&A and its predecessor, the NSCPCCN, have developed a number of innovative programs. These include the first
interprovincial mentorship launched in 2010, a monthly discussion series via GoToMeeting™, annual workshops on key pain and addiction topics, monthly online discussions, mentor training workshops and a safe opioid prescribing course
How Has It Grown?
The Members and the Groups
2009-2011
The NSCPCCN, as it was then known, began an expanded life with groups in Halifax and surrounding area. Initially, there werethree groups in the Halifax – Dartmouth area. The number of groups and the area served grew over this time eventually including members from all across Nova Scotia. In 2011, a number of changes began. Members joined from all across Canada and into the US. These members, while unable to join groups in person, were able to join electronically from a distance. They continue to join group and network discussions via GoToMeeting™. In addition to members from faraway places, 2011 marked the first group expansion of the NSCPCCN outside of Nova Scotia with the development of a group in St. Anthony, Newfoundland.
2012-2013
This was a watershed time for the network. Formal collaboration with Newfoundland and Labrador began late in 2012 as the Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Health and Community Services provided funding for the network to expand in NL. This necessitated a name change to encompass the new mandate. Hence the Atlantic Mentorship – Pain & Addiction. The name proved serendipitous as the Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness, Mental Health and Addiction branch soon provided funding for the AMN–P&A to address addiction as a chronic illness
2013-2019
19 The AMN-P&A has grown substantially from 2013 to 2019. In 2013, the network's membership was represented by health care disciplines and its membership list stood at 237. In 2019, the network's membership list is at 422 representing over 23 disciplines