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ESRA Research Grant

European Society of Regional Anaesthesia and Pain Therapy

Application deadline: 31 December 2026

Grants will be given to ESRA members applying for support for their research in Regional Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine. The proposed research projects are preferentially performed in Europe. Grants will be given preferably to those who apply for a research program headed by an ESRA member. Grants will be given preferably to those who have already done research on regional anaesthesia or pain management and published their results as a first or senior author in peer reviewed international journal.

The grants are given to encourage research programs (rotations) of a duration of at least three months. The grant should be used for direct costs such as ethics committee approval, patients insurance, equipment, materials, research nurses or laboratory assistants, travel costs etc.

The Research Grant consists of a fixed 4,000€ expenses reimbursement paid by bank transfer four weeks ahead of the start of the research program (to be confirmed by the program’s director and by a positive vote of the ethics committee, the dean of the faculty or animal research authority). Thereafter, a grant of up to 3,000€ will be transferred after twelve months or upon completion of data collection, whichever comes first. This will require a reimbursement sheet documenting the real costs of the project. In addition, a report on the status of the project to the chairman of ESRA Grants will be required at that time. The remaining funds will be transferred after acceptance of the manuscript for publication confirmed by an appropriate letter from the editor. The publication of the research project should state that it was sponsored by an ESRA Research Grant.

Obs! It is not allowed to transfer the funds from the ESRA Grant to another study without prior acceptance by the Chairman of the Grants Committee.

In total, a maximum of 10.000€ will be reimbursed per application pending presentation of real costs.

Up to two grants per year are given, totalling up to 20.000€ in financial support.

The application should include:

Application form, click here to download the form
CV of responsible research fellow (primary investigator), including publications, presentations, grants, awards or prizes.
Academic Mentor commitment (chair of department, faculty) (very short CV including publications)
Study protocol including: Short introduction, primary and secondary aims/hypotheses, methods and statistics (group size estimation, data presentation and statistical tests)
Research timeline and cost plan
Ethics committee approval (or animal research approval if appropriate)

Only applications following these guidelines will be evaluated and scored by at least 3 members of the Grants Committee. The best applications will be presented to the ESRA Board members at the Midterm Board meeting in March each year. The ESRA Board will then decide which applications receive the Research Grants.

AI Based Application Success Predictor

1. Direct relevance to regional anaesthesia and pain medicine ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is the most important predictor.

Strong proposals should focus directly on:

Regional anaesthesia
Local anaesthetic pharmacology
Acute postoperative pain
Chronic pain
Cancer-related pain
Regional analgesia
Ultrasound-guided regional anaesthesia
Perioperative pain management
Pain interventions
Anaesthesia-related surgical/obstetric pain management

ESRA states that its Research Grant supports experimental, epidemiological, and clinical research in regional anaesthesia or pain management.

2. Strong clinical relevance and usefulness ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

A competitive project should address a real clinical problem and demonstrate potential to improve:

Pain control
Patient safety
Recovery after surgery
Analgesic effectiveness
Reduction of opioid use
Quality of life
Regional anaesthesia practice
Chronic pain outcomes

ESRA's scientific activities are strongly practice-oriented, and its research/abstract evaluation includes interest and utility as explicit assessment areas.

3. Previous research experience ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is an explicit ESRA Research Grant preference.

ESRA preferably awards research grants to applicants who have:

Already conducted research in regional anaesthesia or pain management
Published research results
Served as first or senior author on peer-reviewed international publications

Therefore, an applicant with a demonstrated RAPM research track record has a significant advantage.

4. Strong scientific methodology ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The research protocol should clearly provide:

Introduction/rationale
Primary aim
Secondary aims
Hypothesis
Study methods
Sample/group-size estimation
Statistical analysis
Data presentation
Research timeline

These elements are explicitly required in the ESRA Research Grant application.

5. Originality and scientific value ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Competitive research should answer an important question rather than simply reproduce established evidence.

Strong proposals may investigate:

Novel regional anaesthesia techniques
New local anaesthetic approaches
New nerve-block strategies
Novel analgesic combinations
New pain biomarkers
Precision pain management
New approaches to opioid reduction
Innovative ultrasound/POCUS applications
New approaches to chronic or cancer pain

6. Strong applicant and academic mentor ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The application requires a CV of the responsible research fellow/PI, including:

Publications
Presentations
Grants
Awards/prizes

It also requires an academic mentor commitment, with information about the mentor's publications and qualifications.

A strong mentor should therefore have relevant expertise and provide credible academic support.

7. Appropriate research environment and feasibility ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The project should demonstrate that the host institution can actually perform the proposed research.

Useful resources may include:

Regional anaesthesia facilities
Ultrasound equipment
Pain clinics
Surgical patient populations
Clinical research infrastructure
Laboratory facilities
Research nurses
Biostatistical expertise

ESRA specifically allows grant funds to cover direct costs such as equipment, materials, research nurses/laboratory assistants, patient insurance, ethics approval, and travel.

8. Potential to develop research capacity ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

ESRA has a specific mission to help anaesthesiologists—particularly those in under-resourced countries—develop scientific programs.

Therefore, a project that:

Builds sustainable local research capacity
Develops new research skills
Establishes a research program
Creates international collaboration
Enables future larger studies

can be particularly well aligned.

9. International/European collaboration ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

ESRA's Research Grant projects are preferentially performed in Europe, and projects headed by an ESRA member are preferred.

International collaboration can strengthen a proposal when it provides:

Specialized expertise
Access to new methodology
Patient recruitment
Training opportunities
Multicentre research potential

10. Exact ESRA membership and career-stage eligibility ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is critical.

For the Research Grant, applicants should:

Be ESRA members
Be at least in their third year of anaesthesia specialization, or
Be enrolled in a regional anaesthesia PhD program.

For the Educational Grant, applicants must also be ESRA members and at least in their third year of medical specialization; preference is given to applicants from countries lacking financial infrastructure for regional anaesthesia education.

Specialties

Anesthesiology

Pain Medicine

Eligibility Requirements

ESRA members from all over the world are encouraged to apply. Applicants should be ESRA members and should be in at least their third year of anaesthesia specialisation or enrolled in a regional anaesthesia PhD programme.

Sponsor Details

Sponsor Institute/Organizations: European Society of Regional Anaesthesia and Pain Therapy

Sponsor Type: Corporate/Non-Profit

Address: Rue de Chantepoulet 10, 1201 Genève

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