In many cases, the physician practicing in this subspecialty will be the medical director of a multidisciplinary team, and hence must be versed in pain management/relief methods employed by team members who are physicians or allied health professionals.

Candidates certified by the Royal College in Anesthesiology, Emergency Medicine, Internal Medicine, Neurology, Pediatrics, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Psychiatry, or Rheumatology are eligible for certification in Pain Medicine.

At the end of the two-year program, candidates will be eligible to sit for the examination in Pain Medicine and, if successful, will be certified by the Royal College in the subspecialty of Pain Medicine.