About ESRA

Advancing Regional Anaesthesia in Europe

The European Society of Regional Anaesthesia and Pain Therapy was founded in 1980 to further regional anaesthesia in Europe. The first congress was held in Edinburgh in 1982 and since that year the society has gone from strength to strength, with a current membership of over 3,700 throughout Europe.

The society is still growing and has now established a strong track record with over 30 annual Congresses. The scientific standard at the annual ESRA Congress is now recognised as one of the best in Europe, and as a result carries a high rating with the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education, who now assigns credit hours to all ESRA Congresses. The annual Congress has taken place in a different European city each year, with Prague hosting the first year in a Central European city, in 1995.

The board of ESRA plan to expand membership in Eastern Europe in line with its aim of improving and standardising the level of regional anaesthesia throughout Europe. Apart from the annual ESRA Congress, the society holds eight to ten zonal meetings each year as well as grants and educational material through its popular e-learning platform, the ESRA Academy. Finally, the European Diploma in Regional Anaesthesia & Acute Pain Management (EDRA) was created in 2005 with the goal of establishing standards in regional anaesthesia in Europe. The Diploma is intended to widen the activity spectrum of those specialists in anaesthesia, who are already in clinical practice and are interested in acquiring additional knowledge in the entire field of regional anaesthesia.

For the second time this year, ESRA organizes the European Diploma of Pain Medicine (EDPM) examination. The aim of the EDPM is to harmonize and improve quality standards for safe, independent practice of pain medicine in Europe and elsewhere.

The Diploma Program is intended to be complementary to national standards and enhance the competent, ethical, and professional care of pain medicine.

Enhance your knowledge in the various aspects of anaesthesia, and assist the aims of ESRA in furthering knowledge and standards in regional anaesthesia and pain therapy.

For more information, visit www.esraeurope.org