This October, in Valladolid, we are holding an Unrepeatable Scientific Event, with which we want to build interdisciplinary bridges between doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, pediatricians and occupational therapists, in addition to filling us with energy for the social and health challenges that we already have in our daily lives.

The best speakers have made a break in their lives, leaving what they had in hand and crossing half the world, in order to be in this event. This year, the entire scientific community will be watching what is said in Valladolid, at the First International Congress on Active Coping with Chronic Pain.

It is clear that we need to see each other now, that we have to continue building together the interrelation of these professions that we love so much, to give the best approaches to patients with chronic pain. In October we have a place reserved for you in Valladolid. We want to see you, and as always, share, exchange, enjoy, debate, ..., in short, talk about what we do together to combat this other silent pandemic, that of chronic pain.

In this congress, we will also have our moment to remember our colleague Miguel Ángel Galán. The legacy of Louis Gifford, the legacy of Miguel Ángel Galán and that of many other colleagues inspires us to continue sharing and moving forward together. Complex problems need to be tackled as a team.

See you at the Congress and encourage you to actively participate in the Active Coping with Pain Week in Valladolid.

We count on you!

Federico Montero.

Doctor in Physiotherapy

Primary Care Physiotherapist in Sacyl.

President of the Scientific Committee.

Promoter together with Miguel Ángel Galán of the first Active Coping Unit for Chronic Pain.

Professor Master Manual Therapy UVA. Professor UEMC.

In the 13th century the poet Dante Alighieri said "he who knows pain, knows everything". Without being so radical, at least I agree with Dante that to know more, at least, you have to know about pain. The good scientist is frustrated by knowing little, and as good scientists we health care professionals sometimes try to banish past mistakes and discover new evidence. Active pain coping strategies are along these lines.

Neuroscience and its advances have allowed us to change the approach to pain treatment, and the people we are honoring in this event, MIGUEL ÁNGEL GALÁN and LOUIS GIFFORD, have had a lot to do with this. As great visionaries, they have succeeded in masterfully developing approaches that are changing the lives of thousands of people, without side effects... without adding more problems to the existing ones, without any addictions other than pure life and happiness. They have shown us that true innovation does not only belong to Nasdaq companies.

It has been a luxury to share profession with Miguel and to be able to see his work in first person. His achievements. His legacy. We are proud to see that all his work is also supported by the current Ministry of Health, which recently informed us of its commitment to this type of units throughout our community. The colleagues of the "Unit of Active Coping Strategies for Chronic Pain" bring us this International Congress that the Professional Association of Physiotherapists of Castilla León supports and puts in value. That is why if you really want to be part of this revolution you can not miss the best event on chronic pain in many years. An event that combines science, profession and health innovation in such an incomparable setting as the Miguel Delibes Cultural Center... the largest conference center in Castilla y León. Because neither Miguel nor you deserve less and, as always, with the guarantee and the human and professional support of our collective: the physiotherapists of Castilla y León.

You are just a couple of clicks away from the event that will change your perception of pain and will bring you closer to new approaches. See you at the Delibes.

Jose Luis Morencia.

Physiotherapist GAPVAO

President of the Professional Association of Physiotherapists of Castilla y León.

On October 21-22, 2022 we would like to see you all in Valladolid, enjoying the I International Congress of Active Coping with Chronic Pain that we organize from the Unit of Active Coping Strategies for Chronic Pain of Primary Care of Sacyl together with the Professional Association of Physiotherapists of Castilla y León.

This is the first Unit of these characteristics in the national health system, which was officially inaugurated in December 2021 and with this Congress we want to make it known to you: with its clinical part, its teaching part and its research part. We want to let you know what we do on a daily basis with our patients, what we base this approach on, bring you closer to national and international speakers who will talk to us about where we are and where we are going with the advances in neuroscience and pain, show interdisciplinary teams that are already working together, to open the range of what each health profession can contribute to this type of approach, to introduce you to some of the authors who have inspired us to develop our approach, with special mention to Louis Gifford, to whom we will pay a small tribute on Saturday.

As President of the Organizing Committee, I also invite you to join forces from the Professional Associations of Physiotherapists to bring managers and associations of patients with chronic pain in your community and to extend our invitation to doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, psychiatrists, pediatricians and occupational therapists in your geographical area, who may be interested in the approach to chronic pain and the necessary interdisciplinary work for this type of patients.

In addition to inviting you to come, we would love you to participate actively by presenting a scientific communication for the Congress, as well as in the national contest of children's stories "Explaining pain" organized by the Professional Association of Physiotherapists of Castilla y León.

We look forward to seeing you at this unrepeatable Congress that we are organizing with great affection so that it will be of your greatest interest/appreciation, and where we can also remember together our dear colleague Miguel Ángel Galán.

Isabel Muñoz

President of the Organizing Committee

Physiotherapist of the Active Pain Coping Strategies Unit.

The week of October 17-23, 2022, we have an appointment in Valladolid related to the other pandemic, chronic pain, and active coping strategies as a first approach to it.

During this week, different events will be held, among which we will find moments to honor the figure and legacy of the physiotherapist Miguel Ángel Galán.

Miguel Ángel Galán Martín, besides being a physiotherapist, was my husband... my life partner and the father of my children.

I think we all know his professional career, his concern for creating new care processes and increasingly better treatment protocols and his great interest in the empowerment and recognition of physiotherapy within the framework of interdisciplinary teams in the National Health System. Throughout these last years he devoted much of his time to seek solutions to improve the health of patients. I would say that Miguel was a visionary and a nonconformist against certain types of treatment that he considered ineffective and even obsolete... So he gradually began to document himself, to seek answers through different authors, scientists and health professionals. In our house, many of your names were "sneaking" in every day, of people that I had not had the privilege of knowing until now. You have all been part of Michelangelo's life. All of you have undoubtedly contributed to the creation of the Active Coping Unit for Chronic Pain... Unit that he founded together with his colleague and great friend Federico Montero Cuadrado. This great person and excellent professional deserves special mention! I have a lot to thank him for! He shared many important moments in Miguel's life. Together they worked, studied tirelessly and with illusion until the end... to achieve the fulfillment of a dream...

Fede came up with the idea of this memorial Congress to Miguel Ángel... Thank you very much, Fede, and of course I would also like to thank everyone for making this possible... Thanks to the different Committees, Scientific, Organizing and Honorary Committees and to all the speakers and participants. Many thanks also to the CPFCyL for always supporting and collaborating in everything related to Miguel, thank you very much Jose Luis Morencia, thank you very much to all of you from the bottom of my heart!

I have started this writing saying that Miguel Ángel was my husband, my great partner...Yes...and there he will be eternally... in my heart.... On a personal level Miguel also shone with a lot of light, that is why his departure has left a huge void... and a great sorrow... I am very proud to have had the privilege of sharing his too short existence... He always surrounded himself with "different" people, good people, people, after all, like him. The essence of people is perceived in their actions and felt in their soul...and I perceived all that...his flaws cast little shadow....

Once again, thank you very much to all of you for participating and making this Congress possible.

Thank you very much for contributing to Michelangelo's legacy.

Thank you very much for remembering him.

M. Carmen Coca

Organizing Committee.

Primary Care Physiotherapist.