Professor Michael Sullivan
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Professor of Psychology, McGill University, Quebec, Canada
Dr. Michael Sullivan is currently Professor of Psychology, Medicine and Neurology at McGill University. He also holds cross-appointments with the School of Physical and Occupational Therapy and is Scientific Director of the Centre for Research on Pain, Disability and Social Integration. He has lectured nationally and internationally on the social and behavioral determinants of pain-related disability.
Dr. Sullivan’s program of research addresses psychosocial risk factors for delayed recovery. Dr. Sullivan and his team have developed several instruments to assess psychosocial risk factors including the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS), the Injustice Experiences Questionnaire (IEQ), and the Perceived Deficits Questionnaire (PDQ). Dr. Sullivan also developed the Progressive Goal Attainment Program (PGAP); the first community-based intervention program designed specifically to target psychosocial risk factors for pain-related disability (https://www.pgapworks.com/en/). |
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Dr. Sullivan has published over 200 scientific papers, 25 chapters, and 5 books. He currently holds a Canada Research Chair in Behavioral Health. In 2011, Dr. Sullivan received the Canadian Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology as a Profession. Dr. Sullivan completed his undergraduate training at McGill University and his graduate training at Concordia University.
A CD release in 1999 led to a nomination for best Country Artist at the East Coast Music Awards.
A CD release in 1999 led to a nomination for best Country Artist at the East Coast Music Awards.
The Psychology of Pain: Implications for Practice and Policy
Over the past three decades, research has accumulated showing that psychosocial factors play an important role in the onset, severity, expression and recovery from painful health conditions. As a result, biopsychosocial models have evolved to become the dominant explanatory frameworks guiding research on pain and disability. But that hasn’t been the case in practice; traditional biomedical models of pain continue to characterize the treatment of pain in primary care and insurance policy. Pain-related psychosocial factors are rarely assessed in primary care, and in the case of insurance policy, can be the basis of claim denial. There are real barriers to bringing biopsychosocial models into the management of pain in primary care and insurance policy. Questions that are not easily answered include: How and when should pain-related psychosocial factors be assessed? What types of interventions could be used to target psychosocial risk factors for adverse recovery outcomes? Are such interventions accessible? What are the insurance risks of considering pain-related psychosocial factors as legitimate targets of treatment in individuals with debilitating pain conditions. The challenges of answering these questions will be addressed in this presentation.
