family members speak with a physician in a doctor's office.

UW TelePain Online Course: Chronic Pain Foundations

Course overview

Managing chronic pain in primary care is complex, time-constrained, and rapidly evolving. Chronic Pain Foundations is a flexible, self-paced online curriculum developed by UW TelePain specifically for busy healthcare professionals, including physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, and pharmacists.

Through interactive, case-based clinical scenarios, this course delivers practical, evidence-based strategies to help you assess pain, optimize treatments, ensure patient safety, and confidently manage chronic non-cancer pain in your practice.

Key features

Built for busy schedules

This is a fully self-paced online course. You can log in, leave, and return whenever it is convenient for you.

Flexible curriculum

The complete curriculum features 5 standalone modules. You can complete the modules in any order, and only take the ones that interest you. There is no obligation to complete all 5 modules.

Earn CE credit

Continuing education credit is awarded per module completed upon submitting the evaluation at the end of the course.

How to get started

There is no cost to participate. Enroll in the course to receive access to Chronic Pain Foundations.

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Enroll in the course
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Additional course information

We are building this curriculum sequentially, rolling out modules as they are completed. Currently, Module 1 is available to providers, and Modules 2-5 are in development with anticipated release dates in 2026.

  • Module 1: Introduction to Chronic Pain and Basic Pain Management
    • Time Commitment: Approximately 1 hour
    • What You’ll Learn: How to conduct an efficient, high-yield chronic pain visit in 15 minutes; essential pain neuroscience education to share with patients; how to take a focused pain history; and common primary care pain disorders.
  • Modules 2–5 (In Development): Future modules will launch sequentially and cover Medication Management & Risk Monitoring (Module 2); Non-Pharmacologic & Multidisciplinary Approaches (Module 3); Special Pain Conditions, including Fibromyalgia, CRPS, and Hypermobility (Module 4); and The Language of Pain & Difficult Conversations (Module 5)

The following have reported no conflict of interest:

Contributors

Jane Ballantyne, MD

Christina Bockman, PharmD

Jacob Gross, MD, MPH

Lytia Lai, PharmD

Pamela Pentin, MD

Suzanne Rapp, MD

James Robinson, MD, PhD

Rosanne Sheinberg, MD, ABoIM

Kaitlin Touza, PhD

Eric Wanzel, MSW, LICSW

Mackenzie Welsh, PharmD

Planners

Christina Bockman, PharmD

Jacob Gross, MD, MPH

Amy Law

Cara Towle, MSN, RN, MA

My-Phuong Jawort

Heather Wilcox, MPH, MSW

The following have reported conflicts with ineligible companies:

Contributor

Garth Terry, MD, PhD – Stocks or stock options, excluding diversified mutual funds – Merck (any division)

All relevant financial relationships have been mitigated.

This presentation is intended for educational use only and does not in any way constitute medical consultation or advice related to any specific patient.

 

Continuing education (CE) information

In support of improving patient care, the University of Washington School of Medicine is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

Module 1

The University of Washington School of Medicine designates this enduring material for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Module 1

The University of Washington School of Medicine designates this activity for a maximum of 1 ANCC contact hour(s). Nurses should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Module 1

The University of Washington School of Medicine designates this activity for 1 ACPE contact hour(s). Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. Credit will be uploaded to the NABP CPE Monitor® within 60 days after the activity completion. Per ACPE rules, The University of Washington School of Medicine does not have access nor the ability to upload credits requested after the evaluation closes. It is the responsibility of the pharmacist or pharmacy technician to provide the correct information (NABP ID and DOB (MMDD)) to receive credit.

UAN JA0000336-0000-26-006-H08-P

UAN JA0000336-0000-26-006-H08-T

Module 1

This activity was planned by and for the healthcare team, and learners will receive 1 Interprofessional Continuing Education (IPCE) credit for learning and change. 

Upon completing an individual module, passing a brief comprehension quiz (with unlimited attempts for a passing score of 80%) and submitting a course evaluation, participants may choose to obtain continuing education credits for a nominal fee. (UW staff and faculty can obtain credits at no cost.)

Funding

The program described is supported by grant number UU7TH54333-01-00 from the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth, Health Resources and Services Administration, Department of Health and Human Services.

This program is funded in part by the Washington State Healthcare Authority.

Additional support is provided by the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services Division of Health Care Services.

The contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the Department of Health and Human Services.