Africa region webinar series
Register here to take part in the webinar
This free webinar is only open to members of World Physiotherapy member organisations in the Africa region.
Webinar title
Pain and pain management/Douleur et gestion de la douleur
Date and time
24 April 2025, 17:00-18:00 UTC Check your local time
The webinar will be delivered in English and French, with simultaneous translation provided through AI software.
Speakers
- John Marwa Gikaro, member of Association of Physiotherapists in Tanzania
- Romy Parker, member of South African Society of Physiotherapy
- Youness Azemmour, member of National Fédération of Physiothérapeute in Morocco/National Federation of Physiotherapists in Morocco
- Facilitator: Alberta Nyarko, member of Ghana Physiotherapy Association and vice chair for World Physiotherapy Africa region
Speakers
John Marwa Gikaro: pain assessment
John is a physiotherapist from Tanzania, East Africa. He obtained his bachelor degree of science in physiotherapy from Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College, Tanzania, in 2014, and a master's degree of medical science in rehabilitation medicine and physiotherapy from Nanjing Medical University, China, in 2023. He has over 10 years of professional experience, both clinical and teaching. His clinical and research area of interest is musculoskeletal health, particularly pain management. In July 2022, one of his papers that was published in BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders was selected as the paper of the week by the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP).
Romy Parker: group based physiotherapy for chronic pain
Romy is a professor and director of the pain management unit in the department of anaesthesia and perioperative medicine at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. She is an active researcher who has successfully supervised numerous postgraduate students. Romy is the course convenor of the postgraduate diploma in interdisciplinary pain management, the first programme of its kind in Africa. She is an experienced physiotherapy clinician working in chronic pain management as part of the chronic pain management interdisciplinary team of Groote Schuur Hospital, South Africa. Her research focusses on pain, with emphasis on developing and testing mechanism-based treatments relevant to a South African context. She serves as a councillor for the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP - African representative), she is a past-president of PainSA (the South African chapter of IASP), past-chair of the pain, mind and movement special interest group of IASP and an honorary life member of the pain management physiotherapy group of the South African Society of Physiotherapy.
Romy was awarded the UCT distinguished teacher’s award for 2019, the university’s highest honour for teaching. Her personal goal is for every South African with pain to be able to access a healthcare professional who understands pain. She is the co-editor of the open-access textbook Understanding Pain: Unravelling the Physiology, Assessment, and Management of Pain through South African Stories.
Youness Azemmour: the analgesic effects of manual therapy
Youness is a physiotherapist and osteopath with a doctorate in life and health sciences.
He holds the position of lecturer at the Higher Institute of Nursing and Health Technology in Rabat, Morocco. He is involved in continuing education and scientific research in the fields of manual therapy and cardiorespiratory and oncological rehabilitation.
Webinar description
This webinar will explore different aspects of pain and pain management relevant for physiotherapists in clinical practice. Techniques for assessing and measuring pain will be introduced before a group based physiotherapy approach will be shared with the participants informed by the principles of chronic nociplastic pain, using exercise, education and mindfulness based strategies to treat chronic nociplastic pain. The session will be rounded off with a presentation on the analgesic effects of manual therapy.
Further reading
- Sluka, Kathleen. (2016). Mechanisms and management of pain for the physical therapist: Second edition.
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35658929
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27233479
- Understanding pain: https://openbooks.uct.ac.za/uct/catalog/book/52
- Sparks, C et al; Using Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging to Determine if Cerebral Hemodynamic Responses to Pain Change Following Thoracic Spine Thrust Manipulation in Healthy Individuals. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy (2013), 43(5), 340–348. doi:10.2519/jospt.2013.4631
- Pasquier et al. Spinal manipulation frequency and dosage effects on clinical and physiological outcomes: a scoping review; Chiropractic & Manual Therapies (2019) 27:23, https://doi.org/10.1186/s12998-019-0244-0
