Resources

Point-of-care clinical decision-support tool aligned with the 2017 Canadian Guideline, organized into sections covering initiation, opioid trial, ongoing monitoring, switching, and tapering; includes fillable checklists, morphine equivalence tables, and patient handouts.

Free virtual educational program through SickKids' Paediatric Project ECHO Ontario to empower providers with strategies to mitigate clinical bias and enhance culturally safe pain care for Indigenous and other paediatric patients.

Free webinars for health professionals featuring leading experts presenting research and approaches to understand, treat, and manage chronic pain. Live and on-demand recordings.

Curated CPD resources for all disciplines including National Pain Rounds, PAIN+ CPN, Pain Connect, and language-specific resource hubs (Arabic, Chinese, French, Punjabi, Spanish).

Knowledge translation initiative of the Chronic Pain Network summarising emerging pain research in plain language for both healthcare providers and people living with chronic pain.

National Canadian framework defining 15 competencies required for entry-level physiotherapy pain management practice; developed through a two-round Delphi with 14 of 15 Canadian PT programs; endorsed as the national standard.

Caregiver-focused guide from the Alzheimer Society of Ontario introducing the 3 Rs (Recognize, Report, Repeat) for family members and care partners of people living with dementia, including guidance on behavioural signs of pain.

Peer support and care navigation services connecting Ontarians living with pain to the support and resources they need; volunteers and advocates with lived experience of pain offer guidance.

Podcast from Pain BC featuring chronic pain experts and people living with pain discussing pain management research, tools, and lived experience.

Regional resource library including the ESAS-r, PAINAD, Doloplus-2, equianalgesic dosing charts, and WHO analgesic ladder resources for clinicians and families. Cost: Free.

Ontario-based organisation supporting, educating, and informing people affected by CRPS/RSD; provides comprehensive information on diagnosis, symptoms, and evidence-based treatments including graded motor imagery and mirror therapy. Cost: Free. Phone: 416-498-7622.

Independent officer who receives, investigates, and helps resolve complaints from patients and caregivers about Ontario's publicly funded health sector, including hospitals, long-term care homes, and home care; relevant for those who have experienced inadequate pain management or mistreatment.

Validated 3-item ultra-brief patient-reported outcome measure assessing pain intensity and its interference with enjoyment and general activity; recommended by the Opioid Manager for monitoring chronic pain patients on opioids.

Canada's only national organisation providing peer-led pain self-management support groups; offers Sit and Chat sessions and monthly virtual self-management education and support groups for people living with persistent pain and their caregivers.

Affiliated with the Chronic Pain Association of Canada, this support group serves the Peterborough region. Meetings are held periodically; contact Joan Foster for current schedule.

Pain Ontario's national online chronic pain management portal with both a Youth Portal (12-25, popyouth.ca) and an Adult Portal (18+, portal.poweroverpain.ca); offers self-assessment, free interactive courses, peer support, Ontario Self-Management workshops, and a rich resource library.

Free interactive courses, evidence-based resources, peer support, and workshops for Canadians living with chronic pain; includes Ontario Self-Management workshops and the Pain Course. Cost: Free.

Free, confidential peer support warm line staffed by trained peer supporters offering supportive conversations for those experiencing loneliness, isolation, or anxiety related to chronic pain. Available 4:00 PM-12:00 AM EST, 7 days a week.

Free online portal co-designed by Canadian youth with chronic pain offering self-assessment, evidence-based resources, courses, and peer support in English and French; developed by SickKids' iOUCH Pain Lab. Cost: Free.

Free 6-week interactive online group program for Ontarians living with chronic pain; covers pain science, stress, sleep, goal setting, communication, and meaningful activity using CBT and mindfulness principles; developed by TAPMI and Ontario Health East. Cost: Free.

Northern Ontario-based ECHO program operating since 2018; Wednesday 3:00-4:30 PM ET; open to any Canadian provider; archived case recommendation packages available as a Northern Ontario chronic pain primary care resource bank.

Peer support groups for people living with chronic pain and their loved ones, offered by the Quebec Chronic Pain Association as part of its ongoing member-services framework.

Low-barrier, walk-in outpatient addiction medicine clinics operating across Ontario; offer same-day or rapid access to opioid agonist therapy (buprenorphine-naloxone or methadone), brief counselling, and peer support. Particularly relevant for people with chronic pain and opioid use disorder.

A concise, evidence-based two-page guide from Immunize Canada for parents covering three proven methods to reduce vaccination pain in children: topical anaesthetics, comfort positioning, and distraction, with practical how-to steps.

Clinician-facing educational resources on identifying physiologic changes in older adults that affect pain management; useful for providers in community and long-term care settings. Cost: Free.

Professional association for Registered Massage Therapists in Ontario; practice standards, continuing education, and professional resources for RMTs contributing to chronic pain management as a non-pharmacologic adjunct therapy.

Flagship evidence-based BPG from the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (updated February 2025) providing guidance on pain screening, assessment, integrative pain management, and interprofessional team-based care across all settings and the lifespan; freely downloadable.

Tip sheet from the Chronic Pain Network Patient Engagement Committee on practical roles for patient partners and caregivers in pain research projects.

CanMEDS-based competency framework for pain medicine specialists (Version 2.0, effective July 2025); defines training requirements, milestones, and Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) for the formal Pain Medicine subspecialty.

Province-wide evidence-based online workshops based on the Stanford CDSMP model, including a 6-week Chronic Disease Self-Management Programme, a 6-week Chronic Pain Self-Management Programme, and one-to-one Health Coaching. Cost: Free. Phone: 1-844-301-6389.

Evidence-based, family-centred assessment and treatment for children and adolescents with chronic pain; accepts referrals for patients under 17.5 years; those 17.5+ are directed to TAPMI's Young Adult Pain Clinic. Cost: OHIP-covered. Phone: 416-813-6975.

Canada's largest paediatric pain program; key HCP resources include the Online Paediatric Pain Curriculum (OPPC), Pain in Child Health (PICH) research training, Paediatric Project ECHO Ontario, and SKIP (Central Canada hub). ChildKind International certified.

Transition resources helping youth with chronic conditions and their families plan the move from paediatric to adult health care, including condition-specific guidance and connections to adult services. Cost: Free.

National organisation raising awareness of sickle cell disease in Canada; connects patients to resources, the Canadian SCD Registry, and advocates with governments and clinicians for improved care. Cost: Free.

10-week, 3-hour weekly group CBT program for chronic pain at Hennick Bridgepoint Hospital (Sinai Health), Toronto; physician-led and OHIP-covered (referral required).

2025 evidence review in Pain Reports providing a comprehensive, current evidence base on how social determinants of health influence pain prevalence, severity, functional outcomes, and healthcare access; includes a five-key-actions framework (Awareness, Adjustment, Assistance, Alignment, Advocacy).

National knowledge mobilisation network implementing Canada's first national Paediatric Pain Management Standard and disseminating evidence-based pain solutions to clinicians and families. Cost: Free.

Interprofessional, time-limited self-management program for Northwestern Ontario adults; includes a 6-week intensive daily half-day option (PACE) and a lighter-intensity PACE-IT option. Cost: Free (OHIP-covered). Phone: 807-624-3400.

St. Joseph's Care Group operates the designated adult chronic pain clinic for Northwestern Ontario, listed in the Ontario Ministry of Health chronic pain clinic directory. Services include interdisciplinary assessment and management of complex chronic pain, opioid management, and interprofessional care.

Outpatient program with pain physicians, psychologists, kinesiologists, and nurses; services include surgical pain procedures, radiofrequency interventions, nerve blocks, and group exercise. Cost: OHIP-covered. Phone: 905-573-4823.

Multidisciplinary team including physicians, nurses, psychologists, OT, physiotherapy, social work, and pharmacy; serves adults in London and Southwestern Ontario. Cost: OHIP-covered.

A virtual Ontario-based group therapy practice specialising in chronic pain, offering the Chronic Pain Toolbox workshop (90 min, $100), an intensive 10-week Pain Management Group ($100/session), and an Empowering Young Women with Chronic Pain group ($100/session). Led by a clinical psychologist and occupational therapist registered in Ontario. Not publicly funded — receipts may be submitted to extended health benefits.

Blog by and for youth and young adults with rheumatic diseases, run by a non-profit focused on community, advocacy, and awareness.

Bi-weekly podcast for youth and young adults with rheumatic diseases hosted by Natasha Trehan, featuring conversations on chronic illness, relationships, advocacy, and lived experience.

National bilingual crisis line for anyone thinking about suicide or experiencing a mental health crisis; phone support 24/7, text support 4 pm-midnight ET. Phone: 1-833-456-4566. Text: 45645.

Open-access journal of the Canadian Pain Society publishing research from the clinical and basic sciences, epidemiology, and health policy.

International organisation for the 13 heritable EDS types and hypermobility spectrum disorders; provides diagnostic criteria and checklists, a doctor/therapist finder, virtual support groups, printable materials, and mental health resources. Cost: Free.

Canada's leading endometriosis patient organisation; offers a free EndoHub resource portal, peer support groups, a free menstrual health and endometriosis education programme for Canadian youth, guides, and advocacy resources. Cost: Free.

Specialised outpatient clinic for adults with chronic pain conditions including arthritis, cancer pain, CRPS, headaches, and pelvic pain; also operates a 4-week group-based Rehabilitation Chronic Pain Management Program. Cost: OHIP-covered. Phone: 613-737-8949.

A 4-week, group-based interdisciplinary self-management program designed to help individuals cope with persistent pain through skills training, education, and peer support. Provided by an interdisciplinary team.

Ontario's only provincially designated community (non-hospital) OHIP-funded chronic pain clinic, serving adults in York Region and the Greater Toronto Area. Cost: OHIP-covered.

Anonymous, 24/7 peer-to-peer online mental health community moderated by registered mental health practitioners; free access through partnering colleges, universities, and healthcare providers in Ontario.

Multi-site academic interdisciplinary pain medicine program serving the Greater Toronto Area; central referral hub for adult pain medicine at Toronto academic hospitals including Women's College Hospital, Mount Sinai, UHN, Sunnybrook, and St. Michael's; offers specialist consultations, interventional therapies, opioid management, and group self-management programming.

TAPMI is a centralized hub of adult chronic pain programmes in Toronto (Women's College Hospital, Sinai Health, and others), providing patients with access to pain specialists, interdisciplinary assessment, complex opioid management, and online education (Pain U Online); referral from a primary care provider is required for clinical services.

One of Ontario's first clinics designed to support transition from paediatric to adult chronic pain care for patients aged 17–25; provides access to pain specialists, interventional pain management, neuromodulation, addiction medicine, and physiatry. Initiate referral through SickKids Chronic Pain Clinic. Cost: OHIP-covered.

The world's first dedicated transitional pain service for surgical patients at risk of developing chronic post-surgical pain; accepts outpatient referrals and offers an Indigenous-specific Chronic Pain Toolkit (see Section 4). Cost: OHIP-covered.

A structured six-week, twice-weekly programme combining clinical assessment, group exercise, and education at Queensway Health Centre and Credit Valley Hospital sites (Mississauga) to reduce falls risk in community-dwelling older adults; requires physician referral. No programme fees.

Multidisciplinary group from the Faculties of Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, and Pharmacy at U of T; key resources include the Interfaculty Pain Curriculum (IPC), a curated HCP Resource Directory including equity/inclusion resources, and ongoing pain research training and knowledge translation.

Suite of accredited courses and webinars from U of T Continuing Professional Development; aligns with the 2017 Canadian Guideline for Opioids.

Provides central triage and interdisciplinary services including self-management, CBT, mindfulness, physiotherapy, and interventional procedures; houses the Pain U Self-Management Group Program and the Fibromyalgia Self-Management Group Program. Cost: OHIP-covered.

WSIB policy outlining eligibility and adjudication for workers with chronic pain disability resulting from a work-related injury, including fibromyalgia and somatoform pain disorder. Cost: Free information. Phone: 1-800-387-0750.

Saskatchewan-based podcast that brings together people living with pain, the providers who treat them, and researchers working on topics that affect those living with pain.