Joel Katz, Canada Research Chair in psychology, was given a framed letter of congratulations from Prime Minister Jean Chrétien for his innovative work in the field of pain. VP Research & Innovation Stan Shapson delivered the letter to him on Sept. 6.
Katz has developed a five-part program for pain research. One of his aims is to achieve painless surgery through the use of pre-emptive analgesia. Katz is also trying to address the problem of pain that persists after surgery. In the third part of his research, he will assess pain and medication use for individuals receiving palliative care in hospices across Ontario. In the fourth segment, he will study pain and its management in infants undergoing painful procedures, now that the myth that infants do not feel pain has been put to rest.
In the final focus of his research he will be looking at the fundamental differences in the perception and physiology of pain between the genders and among women, as a function of current reproductive status and hormones.