As a fellow clinician working in pain management, you will have the privilege of helping patients faced with the challenges and complexities of chronic pain. However, sometimes we and our patients find ourselves stuck, seemingly not making progress. There are as many reasons for this as there are patients, and these can relate to biomedical, psychological or social factors, and often complex interactions between multiple factors.   

Getting a fresh perspective or additional expertise can be beneficial in knowing how to move forward, as it can be difficult to get past assumptions for patients we know well. In addition, one of the biggest challenges for all clinicians, no matter how experienced, is that we don’t know what we don’t know. Hence the importance of seeking advice, second opinions, and working as part of a team.

The Tertiary Support Service at Australis Specialist Pain Clinic is available to provide that support for clinicians looking after patients who are on an ACC community pain service. Our experienced team can help you reflect on the situation, explore new treatment options, question existing assumptions, and identify potential barriers to progress.  

Tertiary Support Services are flexible and funded directly to our clinic, so they don't impact on the community service budget. These services can be written advice, video conferencing, or case conference attendance, and may involve whichever members of our team are most appropriate to help.

To initiate this service we do ask that you complete a form - we recognise that this is yet ‘another bloody form to fill out’, but it will help you clarify the ‘problem(s) to solve’ through this service, which in turn will make the service as efficient as possible for everyone.

To access the Tertiary Support Services, please complete the request form and send to tertiarysupport@australismedical.co.nz.  The request will be triaged by a member of our team, and further arrangements made.