We are currently in the second semester of the Master's program in Migraine and Headache Medicine (MMHM) at Kiel University. Fittingly, given the theme of guiding patients through pain therapy, the sailing ship Thor Heyerdahl entered the Schwentine River in front of the Kiel Pain Clinic during the program's break on April 23, 2022. The ship had been at sea for six months. The 50-meter-long three-masted topsail schooner serves as a sail training vessel in the spring and summer, taking young people, adults, and families on various multi-day trips in the Baltic Sea. In winter, as part of the "Classroom Under Sail" project of the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg, a six-month voyage takes place with students who exchange their classrooms for the sailing ship.
On all voyages, the experiential learning concept of "Outward Bound" is central – a life, learning, and working experience that engages the mind, heart, and hands. All the "guests" on board are trainees and actively participate: learning traditional seamanship, setting and furling the sails, standing watch, performing cleaning and galley duties, learning the basics of navigation, tending to the ship's engine, and enjoying and enriching the onboard community. The trainees are guided by volunteer crew members who manage the ship. There is a captain, a helmsman, watch leader, assistant watch leader, deckhands, an engineer, and a boatswain.
The ship's doctor arranged a tour of the ship for the students and lecturers of the Master's program in Migraine and Headache Medicine (MMHM). The sailing Master's course at Kiel University became a reality. Prof. Dr. Dagny Holle-Lee, Head of the West German Headache Center, University of Essen, PD Dr. Charly Gaul, Head of the Headache Center Frankfurt am Main, and Prof. Dr. Hartmut Göbel, Director of the Kiel Pain Clinic, steered the THOR HEYERDAHL into the mouth of the Schwentine River in front of the clinic, concluding a successful day. The afternoon's main topic was acute migraine therapy. The subject was presented and discussed in lectures and small group sessions, reflecting the latest scientific findings. Dr. Axel Heinze, Dr. Katja Heinze-Kuhn, and psychologist Anneke Nielson were awarded the "Migraine Hero 2022" certificate for their commitment to improving patient care.