Fellow of Interventional Pain Practice (FIPP)® Examinations
Thank you for your interest in our FIPP Examination! If you have not done so already, please review the FIPP Exam Information bulletin, available here. This document contains comprehensive information about the exam.
For 2025, we are still finalizing the exact dates for most of the meetings, but the general timing of the events below should be accurate (all exam dates would be preceded by workshops):
NOTE: The FIPP Examination in Taipei, Taiwan on 19 January 2025 is starting to get full. We are still accepting applications, but we cannot guarantee spaces in the exam for applications submitted after 29 October 2024.
- 19 January 2025 – Taipei, Taiwan
- 16 March 2025 – Orlando, FL, USA
- June 2025 – Campinas, Brazil
- 28 August 2025 – Budapest, Hungary
- 19 October 2025 – Istanbul, Turkey
If you wish to apply for the examination, you may do so using the online application button. Once we confirm examination dates/locations we will contact you about final scheduling at a specific examination site. Please note that you must be logged in to the WIP website as an Associate Member in order to access the application.
If you are not already a WIP member, your first year’s membership will be included with the payment of your examination fee. Please submit the form at https://www.worldinstituteofpain.org/join/, and then e-mail [email protected] to be given access to the online application system.
Study Aids
REFERENCES
The following is a list of references that may be helpful in reviewing for the examination. This listing is intended for use as a study aid only.
Primary Readings:
1. Van Zundert J, Patijn J, Hartrick C, Lataster A, Huygen F, Mekhail N & van Kleef M (Eds.). (2012) Evidence-based Interventional Pain Practice: According to Clinical Diagnoses. New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell 2012.
2. Huygen F, Kallewaard JW, van Tulder M, Van Boxem K, Vissers K, van Kleef M, Van Zundert J. “Evidence-Based Interventional Pain Medicine According to Clinical Diagnoses”: Update 2018 Pain Pract. 2019 Jul;19(6):664-675
3. Stogicza A. , Mansano M., Trescot A., Staats P. (Eds) (2020) Interventional Pain : A Step-by-Step Guide for the FIPP Exam. Springer.
4. Raj, P.P, Erdine S. (2012) Pain-relieving Procedures: The Illustrated Guide. New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell.
5. Raj, P.P., Lou, L, Erdine S, Staats P., et al. (Eds). (2008) Radiographic Imaging of Regional Anesthesia and Interventional Techniques (2nd ed.).
6. Diwan S, Staats P. Atlas of Pain Medicine Procedures 1st Edition (2014). McGraw-Hill Education 2014.
Important References:
1. 2013 Physicians Desk Reference (67th ed). Montvale, NJ: Medical Economics. American Pain Society. (2013).
2. Ballantyne J., Fishman S., Rathmell J. (Eds) (2018) Bonica’s Management of Pain (5th ed.) Wolters Kluwer.
3. Brown, D.L. (2010). Atlas of Regional Anesthesia (4th ed.). Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Co.
4. Charlton, J. (2005). Core Curriculum for Professional Education in Pain (3rd ed.). Seattle: IASP Press
5. Hurley RW, Adams MCB, Barad M, Bhaskar A, Bhatia A, Chadwick A, Deer TR, Hah J, Hooten WM, Kissoon NR, Lee DW, Mccormick Z, Moon JY, Narouze S, Provenzano DA, Schneider BJ, van Eerd M, Van Zundert J, Wallace MS, Wilson SM, Zhao Z, Cohen SP. Consensus practice guidelines on interventions for cervical spine (facet) joint pain from a multispecialty international working group. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2022 Jan;47(1):3-59. doi: 10.1136/rapm-2021-103031. Epub 2021 Nov 11. PMID: 34764220; PMCID: PMC8639967.
6. Cohen SP, Bhaskar A, Bhatia A, Buvanendran A, Deer T, Garg S, Hooten WM, Hurley RW, Kennedy DJ, McLean BC, Moon JY, Narouze S, Pangarkar S, Provenzano DA, Rauck R, Sitzman BT, Smuck M, van Zundert J, Vorenkamp K, Wallace MS, Zhao Z. Consensus practice guidelines on interventions for lumbar facet joint pain from a multispecialty, international working group. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2020 Jun;45(6):424-467.
7. Laurence Brunton (auteur), Randa Hilal-Dandan (Eds.) et al. (2017). Goodman & Gilman’s The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics (13th ed.). New York: McGraw -Hill Education.
8. Headache Classification Committee of the International Headache Society (IHS) The International Classification of Headache Disorders, 3rd edition. Cephalalgia. 2018 Jan;38(1):1-211.
9. Raj, P.P. (Ed.). (2008) Practical Management of Pain (2nd ed.). Chicago: Mosby Year Book Publishers.
10. Van Boxem K, Cohen SP, Kuijk van SMJ, Hollmann MW, Zuidema X, Kallewaard JW, Benzon HT, Van Zundert J.Systematic Review on Epidural Steroid Injections: Quo Vadis? Clin J Pain. 2021 Aug 23.
11. Waldman, S.D. (2020). Atlas of Interventional Pain Management (5th ed.). Elsevier.
12. Wall & Melzack’s Textbook of Pain,. (2013). (6th ed.). Elsevier
FIPP Testimonials
MD, FIPP
Lausanne, Switzerland
Dear Friends,
I was recently asked what I would say to someone who was considering taking the Fellow of Interventional Pain Practice (FIPP)® Examination. When I took my FIPP exam in 2007, I already had 10 years of interventional pain practice, excellent training, and felt quite confident in my daily routine. By chance, I met some colleagues who suggested me to take the FIPP exam. I did not feel I really needed it, but found the idea interesting. Well, I didn’t know how much this exam would change my professional life.
Locally, my daily practice improved significantly. The FIPP certification made me feel more confident, I was up to date with my readings and also with my techniques. Interestingly, it also had an important impact on my referrals, as local physicians knew they had a real specialist to talk to and not just another anesthesiologist doing pain.
Nationally, it helped me build up our interventional pain society, and I based our post-graduate education on clear and validated criteria to set up and develop the pain specialty. I also knew I could count on the support of my FIPP peers for questions and exchanges.
Internationally, it was probably for me the biggest surprise. I got invited to teach, and to examine colleagues who now are close friends, people with whom I have frequent exchanges. We have common projects and learn from each other.
For me, the FIPP exam and the WIP organization in general changed my understanding of pain and made me a part of a worldwide network; I now feel part of this professional family!
I hope these words will encourage you to study for and take the Fellow of Interventional Pain Practice (FIPP)® Examination in the near future. It changed my life, and will change yours as well!
Cheers,
philippe
Contact the Board of Examination
Write to us or call with any questions.
Registrar of Examination
Monique Steegers, MD, PhD, FIPP
Email: [email protected]
Examination Program Director
D. Mark Tolliver, MA
Email: [email protected]
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