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A public health roadshow aimed at supporting people affected by chronic pain will roll into Hartlepool this week.

Aimed changing the way sufferers, families and health professionals think about and treat chronic pain, the Flippin’ Pain campaign tour will feature an interactive experience vehicle.

Passers-by can hop onboard the Brain Bus at Hartlepool Market Place from 8am-1pm, on Thursday, May 11.

It will be manned by a team of healthcare specialists and offer an immersive experience for attendees.

Hartlepool College of Further Education, in Stockton Street, is hosting two events as part of the chronic pain roadshow. Picture by FRANK REID

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People are also invited to sign up for Pain Do You Get It, a free public seminar looking at some of the latest science of pain hosted by world-renowned pain expert Professor Lorimer Mosley.

It takes place at Hartlepool College of Further Education, conference room 1, from 5.30am-7pm.

Also running at the college at the same time in conference room 3 is Lifting the Lid on Pain, a workshop for health professionals.

A boy trying a 'phantom hand' test at a previous campaign drop in event.

Flippin Pain’s campaign director Richard Pell said: “Understanding pain is so important. We know that how people think about their pain can change the way it feels and how they respond to it. Many long-held beliefs about pain are hugely out of step with modern scientific understanding.

"Many are suffering more than they should, losing control of their lives and their quality of life.”

The roadshow is visiting towns around the North East where around two in five (43%) of people are affected by chronic pain.

Both events at Hartlepool College are free but attendance must be booked in advance online at www.eventbrite.co.uk.

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