Psychologically Informed Collaborative Conversations (PIC-C)

Pain is common in the general population, affecting between one-third and one-half of UK adults ¹.  Pain that persists is known to have an impact on the psychological wellbeing of those affected ²

Psychologically informed practice approaches are recommended in many guidelines and treatment approaches ^3,4 yet exactly what these approaches are remains unclear ^3,5 and clinicians lack confidence to deliver these approaches and to support people living with persisting pain ⁶.

Drawing on past work in this field, we conceptualise psychologically informed practice as:

 a framework that supports clinicians to enhance existing clinical skills through awareness of psychological factors that can limit outcomes ⁷, using strategies that are core competencies in cognitive behavioural approaches (such as goal setting) ⁸, and communication skills to enhance therapeutic alliance⁹.

We want to stress that adopting a psychologically informed approach is not about discounting or abandoning your current clinical skills. Rather it offers a framework within which to deliver your treatment and clinical care, by enhancing skills you will already be familiar with including ³:

• Developing collaborative working skills and a therapeutic relationship
• Identifying what matters for the person with pain
• Helping the person to identify goals that matter to and motivate them
• Using homework such as setting activities and exercises to support them

What is PIC-C training?

Clinicians have asked for training to support them in developing psychologically informed skills. With the support of funding from Q Improvement and the Health Innovation Network of South London, and together with people who live with pain, St Georges and Kingston Hospitals, and Prof FJ Keefe (Duke University USA) the PPA have developed training called Psychologically Informed Collaborative Conversations (PIC-C), using co-production methodology, to support clinicians to enhance their psychologically informed skill ^5,10

To learn more about the training and the outcomes of the initial evaluation you can visit the HIN website here:  Psychologically Informed Collaborative Conversations (PIC-C) - Health Innovation Network

Or watch this video:

I want to know more!

Occasionally we run PIC-C and you can book on as an individual clinician.

It is also possible to commission this training for your department or organisation and we have done this many times now.

If you choose to commission the PIC-C training for your service or organisation, you will receive:

• The 16 session training & supervision programme (20 hours of training spread over 16 weeks)
• Two expert facilitators (a pain specialist physiotherapist and psychologist)
• Course e-workbook, e-resources and reading materials throughout the training

Training format:

•  Online or In person delivery depending on your requirements
•  Weekly sessions 16 weeks
  • Weeks 1-8:
    • 90min whole group experiential learning session (Max 20 participants)
  • Weeks 9-16:
    • 60 min small group supervision (10 participants & 1 facilitator per group)
• Example Time table below:
• PPA Timetable - Psychologically Informed Collaborative Conversations.pdf

How much does it cost to do this training?

• The PPA and this course are run on a not-for-profit basis.
• The ethos of the PPA and Collaborators in developing this training was to offer the most affordable training possible.  
• The costs for delivering this programme are kept to the minimum possible and with the per-participant cost in mind. Currently we are aiming to keep this training in the region of £300 to £400 per participant, for a maximum of 20 participants per course and for 20 hours of expert facilitated taught content plus resources.  
• Costs are subject to change depending on needs (and may be more for in person training).

Course enquires and to put your name on the list for our next course:

Please contact us using the email link below with the subject titled: I’m interested in PIC-C. We can provide you with dates for upcoming courses and/or work with you to develop a bespoke course for delivery within your department or area of specialty.

•  ppa.education2@gmail.com
• diarmuid.denneny@brunel.ac.uk