Slater H, Jordan JE, O’Sullivan PB, Schütze R, Goucke R, Chua J, Browne A, Horgan B, De Morgan S, Briggs AM. “Listen to me, learn from me”: a priority setting partnership for shaping interdisciplinary pain training to strengthen chronic pain care. Pain. 2022;163(11):e1145–e1163.

This paper explored the care-seeking priorities of people living with chronic pain and carers and how these can shape interdisciplinary workforce training to improve high-value pain care. The “listen to me, learn from me” framework of 44 empirically-derived pain care priorities reflected strong multistakeholder consensus for what is most important to Australian people living with chronic pain and those supporting them, when seeking pain care. This framework underpins the OPEN pain training, ensuring that our training efforts remain faithfully focused on supporting person-centred pain care.

Klem NR, Briggs AM, Rowbotham S, Schütze R, O’Sullivan PB, Smith AJ, Tory B, Stinson JN, Lord SM, Slater H. “It’s kind of just like a never-ending cycle”: young people’s experiences of co-existing chronic musculoskeletal pain and mental health conditions. J Pain. 2025;32:105412.
This paper explores and highlights the bidirectional interactions of pain and mental health of young people experiencing these co-occurring conditions. The feedback loop of pain and mental health suggests the need for a whole person, interdisciplinary approach that is titrated to the needs of the young person and addresses both chronic musculoskeletal pain and mental health concurrently. 

Slater H, Briggs AM. Strengthening the pain care ecosystem to support equitable, person-centered, high-value musculoskeletal pain care. Pain. 2024;165(11S):S92–S107.
This paper examines the application of systems strengthening research to building capacity across the pain care ecosystem to support equitable person-centred care and healthy ageing across the lifespan.

Slater H*, Waller R, Briggs AM, Lord SM, Smith AJ. Characterizing phenotypes and clinical and health utilization associations of young people with chronic pain: latent class analysis using the electronic Persistent Pain Outcomes Collaboration database. Pain. 2025;166(1):67–86.
Drawing on data from the Australiasian electronic Persistent Pain Outcomes Collaboration pain registry, this paper explores and characterizes nationally representative chronic pain phenotypes of young people 15 to 25 years. Three similar phenotypes were derived (“low,” “moderate,” “high”), characterized by an increasing symptom-severity gradient in multidimensional pain-related variables. Phenotypes showed meaningful differences across clinical and sociodemographic factors, health service utilization, and medicines use, pointing to the need for novel care models that differentially respond to the care needs of distinct groups of young people.

Schmid AB*, Tampin B, Baron R, Finnerup NB, Hansson P, Hietaharju A, Konstantinou K, Lin CC, Markman J, Price C, Smith BH, Slater H*. Recommendations for terminology and the identification of neuropathic pain in people with spine-related leg pain: outcomes from the NeuPSIG working group. Pain. 2023;164(8):1693–1704.

*shared lead authors

This paper led by members of the Neuropathic Pain Special Interest Working Group explored how we can better define and identify neuropathic pain in people presenting with spine-related leg pain. The working group disentangled the term “sciatica” and provided clear recommendations for use of the term “spine-related leg pain” which includes the case definitions of somatic referred pain and radicular pain with and without radiculopathy. In this context, an adaptation of the neuropathic pain grading system, is provided to facilitate the identification of neuropathic pain and initiation of specific person-centred pain management.