By: 20 June 2018
Innovation grant looks at overcoming problems in access to treatments

The first of its kind, the inaugural Brain, Mind and Pain Patient-Centred Innovation Grant will announce its winners today at 13:00 at the Leopold Hotel in Brussels.

“The Brain, Mind and Pain Patient-Centred Innovation Grant is a new type of grant. It is the first pan-European grant into pain research and innovation that judges applications based on how patient-centred they are,” says Pain Alliance Europe President Joop van Griensven.

“Patients should be at the very centre of everything we do. Whether it is research, advocacy or treatment, it all starts with and comes back to the patient – and this is what we have meant to achieve with the Brain, Mind and Pain Grant.”

“We trust Pain Alliance Europe’s initiative will encourage other patient organisations to take a similar approach in the way they organise their grant programs. This is needed in order to give patients a voice at every step of their journey.”

This year’s theme was “Overcoming problems in access to treatments”, with a total grant pool of €90,000.

The projects were assessed by a jury composed of patients and patient representatives with the support of scientific experts. Their evaluation criteria were based on three factors:

  • does it have a patient-driven, patient-centred approach?
  • is the solution provided new and innovative?
  • what impact will it have on a patient’s quality of life?

The Brain, Mind, and Pain Patient-Centred Innovation Grant is a joint project run by Pain Alliance Europe and financially supported by Grünenthal, with partner support from the European Pain Federation (EFIC), the European Academy of Neurology (EAN), and the European Federation of Neurological Associations (EFNA).

For more information about the grant and it’s awards, visit: www.pae-eu.eu