A NEW campaign to help relieve chronic pain has been launched.

Lucas Hawkes-Frost, clinical operations manager for the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust, visited the Houses of Parliament last week for the launch and met with health minister Earl Howe.

The campaign is based around a report which recommends changes to current practice.

These include introducing national guidelines on the identification and treatment of chronic pain and an awareness prevention campaign.

The NHS spends more than £500 million per year on pain medication alone, while the UK’s annual incapacity benefit bill for those living with chronic pain stands at £3.8 billion.

See the full story in Tuesday's Gazette.