One in five Dutch people experience chronic pain in daily life. So many people in pain, but knowledge and experience about living with pain is hardly exchanged. The pain patient, loved ones and the many pain practitioners often hardly know each other’s needs. It’s time for a pain platform that connects everyone and everything. Regardless of (pain) diagnosis, age or (social) background. Read more on mission, vision and purpose of LPO.
You are now in the Town Hall of Pijnstad. Welcome! In the Town Hall we explain who Pijnstad (‘Pain City’) is intended for, what we want to achieve with it and what it benefits you as a pain patient, a loved one, a professional or as an organization.
LPO’s mission, vision and purpose in a nutshell
You can also read on this page:
- Who is the LPO active for?
- Why does the LPO want to support adults with chronic pain?
- Why is self-management central to the LPO?
- Why are the Bio-Psycho-Social model and Positive Health pillars of the LPO?
- How is the LPO financed?
What is the mission of the LPO?
Assisting people with chronic pain and their loved ones, to make a tangible difference in the lives of everyone who has to deal with chronic pain.
Mission as formulated in the statutes of the Landelijke Pijn Organisatie (“National Pain Organization”)
We have supplemented this in the articles of association with:
- Achieving an optimal quality of life and participation in society for people with chronic pain.
- Facilitating mutual contact between everyone who has to deal with chronic pain.
In other words: we want to help people learn to live with chronic pain, we want people with pain to participate more fully in society and we want to connect pain patients, loved ones and pain professionals.
Who is the LPO active for (target groups)?
The National Pain Organization Foundation is committed to helping adults who deal with chronic pain . They are often looking for recovery and/or want to gain more control over their lives with pain. The LPO is (also) there for people who can no longer see the forest for the trees in the number of treatment options in the Netherlands.
But of course, as a patient organization we don’t just reach the pain patient. We also focus on loved ones of people with chronic pain. We take collaboration with pain professionals for granted. Other stakeholders include employer organizations, municipalities, central government, health insurers, pain clinics, pharmaceutical companies and general practitioners.
What is the vision of the LPO?
The LPO wants to offer these people – pain patients and loved ones – a guide: the online platform Pijnstad (Pain City). Through Pijnstad we can achieve LPO’s mission : making a tangible difference in the lives of people with pain and their environment. Pain City strengthens the grip of everyone who has to deal with pain. Grip on the process of learning to deal with (daily) pain.
We do this by:
- provide reliable information
- to offer help in making the right choices and
- connecting them with fellow sufferers and with the most suitable practitioners for them.
Core focus: self-management
In Pijnstad we will soon also pay attention to the care offering for self-management . We are convinced that self-care can strengthen that grip and restorative capacity . We believe that people can decide for themselves what care is needed, focused on what someone really finds important in life. This can lead to a better, more meaningful existence and to pain reduction.
As an online patient platform, we can and want to play a crucial role in this
New vision on ‘health’
We are setting up the online platform based on the new definition of health. The concept of Positive Health and the Bio-psycho-social model form the basis for this. The platform is designed in such a way that adults with chronic pain, who want to learn to deal with it, can contact each other, organizations and practitioners.
What is the purpose of LPO?
Making a tangible difference in the lives of people with chronic pain is central to the LPO. The tool we use for this is the online platform Pijnstad. By creating this platform, the pain patient and their loved ones can:
- find everything about pain in one place
- take control of his health into his own hands
- are taken by the hand to make the right choice for them with regard to, for example, treatments and self-care
- learning about self-management, based on Positive health and the Bio-psycho-social model
- learn to deal with his pain ( in the long term ) through the Pain Academy
- join the online community for recognition and support
Why do we want to realize this goal?
Many organizations and patient associations have been active in chronic pain for decades. For years there has been lobbying for better pain care. For more attention to chronic pain. For recognition of chronic pain as a disease in its own right.
Much has already been achieved in this area and significant steps have been made in recent years, for example with the recognition by the World Health Organization (WHO) of chronic pain as a disease in its own right.
But strangely enough, there is no platform today where all those pain patients can find each other and exchange knowledge and experiences. Where they are served with practical tips & tools to get through daily life with pain as best as possible.
By choosing an interactive, online platform such as Pijnstad, we can best assist the pain patient and their loved ones and at the same time maximize the reach and effect of the LPO. The LPO therefore focuses largely – but not exclusively – on online communication.
With its focus on practical support for the pain patient, loved ones and pain professionals, the LPO distinguishes itself from other parties in the pain world. LPO adds value to what PA!N and Pijnpatiënten naar een Stem, among others, do in The Netherlands.
How is the LPO financed?
Of course, the LPO is still in the start-up phase. That is an exciting phase, also financially. With the help of administrative and financial experts, the broadest possible financing mix is put together. You can think of:
- institutional subsidy (Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport)
- project subsidies (for realization of Pijnstad parts)
- funds
- major donations and philanthropy
- donations, legacies and inheritances
- small donations and sympathizer contributions
- sponsorship
Care
As an LPO, we handle this financing and considerations surrounding financing options with care. We always want to be able to communicate independently and we will always make this independence a condition for sponsorship, for example.
Financing tip?
Do you have a tip for a financing option? Or are you thinking about supporting LPO financially? We would like to hear from you. Please contact one of the board members.