Here at the London Pain Clinic, our leading Pain Doctors are globally renowned for setting the standard of excellence and best practice. Always up-to-date with the latest research on pain and pain medicine, injectables and therapies, we would like to inform our patients and followers about the GIRFT (Getting It Right First Time) chronic pain initiative, which was launched by the NHS in July 2025.
Announcement on the Rewriting of Pain Care
The British Pain Society have recently reported: “an important development in pain services across the NHS. NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) programme has launched a new chronic pain workstream to help ensure that more people living with chronic pain – including children and young people – receive personalised, holistic and evidence-based care” [1]. – All elements that our Pain Specialists adhered to long ago, with the London Pain Clinic’s drive for a broader outlook above and beyond conventional medicine. This resulted in providing our patients with a Holistic Personalised Treatment Plan.
The Low-Down on Holistic Personalised Treatment Plans
These Holistic Personalised Treatment Plans – which are drawn up by our Pain Doctors after they have reviewed the patient’s medical history, conducted any necessary tests and scans, and established an accurate diagnosis (unless the patient already has one), are multifaceted in nature. This means that alongside contemporary medicine, the individualised plans also incorporate proven, state-of-the-art leading edge injectables (including pain blockers and Botox), as well as a variety of therapies. Moreover, our patients (and new patients), are able to have either an in-person or online appointment with one of our highly experienced leading Pain Consultants.
What Does the New NHS Chronic Pain Initiative Offer?
The purpose behind this new drive is to: “support seamless transitions between services and shine a light on best practice across the system. Working in collaboration with the British Pain Society, the Faculty of Pain Medicine, and wider stakeholders, this GIRFT workstream” [1] will concentrate on:
- Using peer reviews to decrease variation in services
- Supporting personalised care and addressing inequalities
- Providing better access to multidisciplinary pain management
- Promoting the use of digital tools
- Offering more education about pain and pain management
- Supporting return to school or work, and
- Reducing the risk of harm from pharmaceuticals [1]
Statement by Clinical Lead on Long-Term Pain
Dr Helen Makins, who is now serving as the GIRFT clinical lead for chronic pain, stated: “This GIRFT programme is an exciting and long-awaited opportunity for the field of chronic pain management, and I am delighted and privileged to lead it. I know that there is much excellent work and innovation occurring in all parts of the system and we will be looking to shine a light on best practice, while identifying ways to share this equitably around the country. Importantly, this work will link closely to other relevant GIRFT workstreams and key stakeholders. Through liaison with multidisciplinary health and social teams, third sector organisations and patients, we will provide recommendations for improvement which are both fit for the future NHS and benefit the large number of people of all ages experiencing chronic pain” [2]. These aforementioned aspects are extremely important, as is the need for providing an accurate diagnosis. Unfortunately, as things stand, at the current time, the majority of GPs have not undergone the necessary years of additional training and in-house clinical practice in the fields of pain and pain treatment, to be able to always do this.
References
[1]. British Pain Society (2025). “New GIRFT chronic pain workstream launched – improving care for all ages.”
https://www.britishpainsociety.org/mediacentre/news/2025/
[2]. NHS England (2025). “Chronic pain in the spotlight as GIRFT launches new workstream.”
