Pain Science Education for Persistent Pelvic Pain: What Expert Clinicians Agreed Should Be Taught

Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants who see patients with persistent pelvic pain, and any rehabilitation clinician who delivers pain education as part of a biopsychosocial plan of care.

Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants. The material is also relevant to occupational therapists, athletic trainers and other licensed rehabilitation professionals who work with pelvic health populations. Physical therapist assistants work under the direction and supervision of a physical therapist; evaluation, diagnosis and plan-of-care decisions remain with the physical therapist.

Intended audience

Physical Therapy

Level

Introductory

Delivery format

Online, asynchronous, self-paced course: interactive reading with audio or video, and a scored post-test.

Based on

This course reports on a single published study and introduces no claims beyond it.

Source: a three-round electronic Delphi consensus study in which 20 international, multidisciplinary expert clinicians generated and rated pain science education learning concepts considered important for females with persistent pelvic pain associated with benign gynaecological and urological conditions. The study was pre-registered on the Open Science Framework, received ethical approval from the Human Research Ethics Committee of the University of South Australia, and was reported in line with the Conducting and Reporting of Delphi Studies (CREDES) recommendations.

What this source is, and is not

The study is a consensus exercise about what expert clinicians value teaching. It is not a trial of patient outcomes. The authors were explicit that they did not check the generated concepts against empirical evidence, and that some concepts on the final list are not supported by current literature.

After completing this course, you will be able to:

1. Describe the purpose, population and consensus design of the expert-clinician study on pain science education concepts for persistent pelvic pain.
2. Name several of the overarching pain science education categories the expert panel generated, including those developed for specific pelvic pain conditions and life stages.
3. State the limitations the authors reported and explain what they concluded about how the resulting concepts might be used in research and clinical settings.

1. Start Here: how this course works and what the source study covers
2. Podcast: What Expert Clinicians Agree Belongs in Pelvic Pain Education (about nine minutes)
3. Persistent Pelvic Pain and the Case for Pain Science Education
4. How Twenty Expert Clinicians Built the List
5. The 125 Learning Concepts and Their Thirteen Categories
6. Concepts for Specific Conditions and Life Stages
7. Limits of the Consensus and What It Could Mean in the Clinic
8. Key Takeaways
9. Post-test and course evaluation

Quinn Millington, PT, DPT, ECS is the instructor of record: the licensed clinician who reviewed this course and signed off on it. The name and credentials print on the certificate.

Disclosures. This course was developed by The ConEd Solution, which has a financial interest in its sale. No outside funding or sponsorship was received. The instructor of record has no affiliation with the authors of the source publication or their institutions.

This course awards 0.5 contact hours (30 min). How you earn them:

1. Complete the course. Every lesson, in order.
2. Pass the post-test. Score 80% or higher. Retakes are allowed.
3. Complete the evaluation. A short form rating each learning objective and the course.
4. Download your certificate. It is issued on completion and stays available in My Account.

The episode time is its measured length. Reading, post-test and evaluation times are estimates.

This course is designed to satisfy the quality requirements state boards set for continuing education. Requirements vary by state, and confirming that a course fits your renewal is up to you. Each state’s own acceptance statement is in the credit panel on this page.

1. This course reports on a single published study and introduces no claims beyond it.
2. Source: a three-round electronic Delphi consensus study in which 20 international, multidisciplinary expert clinicians generated and rated pain science education learning concepts considered important for females with persistent pelvic pain associated with benign gynaecological and urological conditions. The study was pre-registered on the Open Science Framework, received ethical approval from the Human Research Ethics Committee of the University of South Australia, and was reported in line with the Conducting and Reporting of Delphi Studies (CREDES) recommendations.
3. What this source is, and is not
4. The study is a consensus exercise about what expert clinicians value teaching. It is not a trial of patient outcomes. The authors were explicit that they did not check the generated concepts against empirical evidence, and that some concepts on the final list are not supported by current literature.