NRS Pain meeting in Dundee is ‘valuable opportunity for community to come together’
The NHS Research Scotland (NRS) Pain Network and Scottish Pain Research Community (SPaRC) will host its 16th Annual Scientific Meeting later this year, providing an opportunity to share current and recent research, make fresh connections, and identify potential collaborations
Taking place on Friday 4 December at Malmaison Dundee, the event will also support further knowledge sharing around patient and public involvement and engagement (PPIE) activities, including identifying how they are most benefitting patients.
In attendance will be the newly announced NRS Pain Clinical Lead and SPaRC Steering Committee Chair, Professor Gary Macfarlane. As Clinical Chair in Epidemiology at the University of Aberdeen, Professor Macfarlane brings a wealth of experience to support advances in pain research.
Confirmed guest speakers include Professor Neil O'Connell of Brunel University. Professor O’Connell is Chair of Evidence-Based Healthcare and his main research interest is in persistent pain, with a specific focus on evaluating the effectiveness of clinical interventions for people in pain.
He is joined by Professor Annina Schmid of the University of Oxford. As Professor of Pain Neurosciences, her key aim is to deepen the understanding of pain neuroscience and translate research into effective treatments for people with nerve-related symptoms.
Professor Macfarlane said: “We look forward to welcoming a diverse group of attendees to Dundee this December and, as my first annual scientific meeting as Clinical Lead, it will be a great opportunity to meet the community and hear about the many scientific and clinical advances taking place in the field of pain.
“Fundamentally, the meeting will provide a valuable opportunity for professionals, people with lived experience and researchers in the field of pain science to come together and discuss the latest scientific advancements, with more of a focus being placed on PPIE activity this time – now of course a cornerstone of high-quality research.”
Registration and a call for abstracts is open, with submissions for oral and poster presentations welcome in the categories of 'Research', representing the full range of pain-related studies including basic, clinical and population science; and 'Patient and Public Involvement/Engagement (PPIE)' activity happening in pain research across Scotland.
Guidance notes can be accessed in the links above with both submission windows closing on Tuesday 6 October.
Exhibitor opportunities are also available. If you wish to reserve an exhibitor stand, or have any other queries, please contact NRS Pain Portfolio Performance Manager Jacqui Pearson.
Publication date: 9th September 2026
