National Pain Awareness Week: Meet Dr. Hance Clarke
Staff anesthesiologist and the Director of Pain Services at the Pain Research Unit at the Toronto General Hospital, Dr. Hance Clarke
Dr. Hance Clarke is a jack-of-all-trades.
Clinician and scientist, Dr. Clarke is a staff anesthesiologist and the Director of Pain Services at the Pain Research Unit at the Toronto General Hospital.
He’s also leading a team researching chronic pain treatment, specifically looking at how medical cannabis can help people living with chronic pain symptoms.
Why did you pursue a career in pain medicine?
My undergraduate degree was an Hons. BSc. in Physiology and Psychology, followed by a MSc. in Behavioural Neuroscience and a PhD in Clinical Sciences. Anesthesia involves administering medications and watching the effects that these medications have on our central nervous system (CNS). Pain medicine encompasses all areas of my educational background and was the perfect fit for someone like me who understands that the brain, exercise and medications can all play a role in altering pain perception and have direct impacts on our CNS. Despite being such a significant problem for many Canadians, the paucity of good treatments was so alarming to me that I really wanted to make a difference and help influence this situation for the better by the end of my career.
What is something that you’re working on (or researching) now that you’re excited about?
We always have multiple projects on the go. Right now, my team is conducting a five site randomized clinical trial on the efficacy of our Transitional Pain Service that we pioneered in 2014. However, medical cannabis has become such a problem for Canadians since it was recreationally legalized because of the lack of credible information and physician guidance available.
I take pride in my research team’s current longitudinal work within the medical cannabis space designed by my UHN team in partnership with Shoppers Drug Mart as well as a couple of ongoing trials looking at the efficacy of medical cannabis. I feel a responsibility to help patients understand the benefits and risks associated with medical cannabis and demystify the long-held negative stigma that to date continues.
What are some of your career highlights that you can share with us?
Every time I have an opportunity to change the trajectory of someone’s life, it gives me a sense of purpose to continue along this journey of helping those suffering with chronic pain/substance use live more meaningful lives. Additionally, speaking to Senatorial representatives in the House of Commons, Ottawa, and recently being elected by my colleagues/peers as the president-elect of the Canadian Pain Society have both been huge honours.
In your opinion, what impact would an increased focus on pain medicine and research have on patient care?
Patients suffering with many chronic illnesses (cancer, rheumatologic (autoimmune) conditions, osteoarthritis, etc.) have chronic pain as one of the most impactful symptoms affecting their daily existence. Increasing the focus on pain medicine and more importantly increasing the focus and funding on research aimed at finding a solution to this incurable problem could lead to significant improvement in the quality of life of 30% of the world’s population.
What’s your advice for someone thinking about entering the field?
Pain medicine is one of the most challenging fields of medicine. It encompasses so many subspecialties and is fraught with as many failures as there are successes. However, pain medicine is also the most rewarding and fulfilling aspect of my professional practice, which also encompasses clinical anesthesia, hyperbaric medicine, and research.
My advice to practitioners is to center themselves from within to meet every patient with empathy to help drive them towards more positive and meaningful activities in their daily lives.
