Pain Cafés
Our work on this programme has now ended.
Overview
Aiming to reduce harm from opioid medicines by reducing high-dose prescribing (>120mg oral Morphine equivalent) for non-cancer pain
Supporting the innovative Pain Cafe approach
Championing the inequalities agenda and patient voice
Programme Information
Pain Cafés are local, community-led spaces where people living with chronic pain can come together to share experiences, learn self-management strategies, and access holistic support without relying on high-risk opioid medications. They provide a non-judgemental, informal environment – helping reduce isolation and build confidence in managing pain.
Our team supported the development and expansion of Pain Cafés across the South West as part of the national Medicine Safety Improvement Programme from 2021 to 2024. While our work on this area has now concluded, Pain Cafés continue to be run by local teams and partners across the region.
Local Impact
- Cornwall: 20 Primary Care Networks launched or planned Pain Cafés
- Devon: Over 10 Pain Cafés established and growing
- Somerset: A system-wide rollout included cafés and additional pain management support
This model has helped shift elements of chronic pain care into community settings – supporting long-term, non-pharmacological approaches to wellbeing.
Resources for patients and healthcare professionals
During this project, we have gathered tools and resources to support you to plan improvement projects in order to reduce harm from opioids.
At FutureNHS (login required), you can find helpful resources as you set about to design and deliver improvement programmes for people living with chronic pain, including case studies of deprescribing opioids, methods to identify patients at risk of dependence and/or harm, and interventions designed to maintain lowest possible opioid use.
The national Medicine Safety Improvement team developed and made available a Whole Systems Approach to High-Risk Opioid Prescribing (accessible via FutureNHS) to support local approaches, with shared decision making at the centre, and extending the pathway for prevention.
You can also access a wealth of available resources, case studies and patient stories from the Integrated Care Systems in the South West on the NHS England and NHS Improvement South West website.
“After spending 25 years on high dose pain medication and learning tools to manage my pain without medication, I have been telling my story to help others.
Patients listen to patients. We have been on the journey. This is why pain cafes are so important. People in pain can come and meet others in pain; they don’t have to go to the GP or hospital, which can be stressful to start with.
Doing the work that I do gives me great joy, knowing I am giving others hope – that there is another way.”
– Sean Jennings, person with lived experience of chronic pain
Get in touch
The focus of the national programme has now moved to reducing harm from psychotropic medicines prescribed to people with a learning disability, which you can find out more about here.
For more information, or if you have any questions, please contact us.
Useful Links
- Download report: Improving Chronic Pain Management by Reducing Harm from Opioids Report 2021
- FutureNHS (login required): Step by step guide on how to implement Whole Systems Approach to High-Risk Opioid Prescribing in your Integrated Care System
- NHS England and NHS Improvement South West: Resources, case studies and patient stories
- Sean’s story ‘There is another way’ (This video is aimed at patients who are considering alternative options to medication for pain management)
- Sean's Story 'There is another way' (Information for prescribers)
