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Does routine pain assessment result in better care?
Thomas Hadjistavropoulos1, Ying C MacNab, Aamanda Lints-Martindale
1Department of Psychology and Centre on Aging and Health, University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan. Thomas.Hadjistavropoulos@uregina.ca
Pain Research & Management
|June 24, 2009
Summary
Systematic pain assessment information did not change clinician prescribing habits or patient pain reports. Further interventions are needed to ensure pain assessment data is utilized in clinical practice.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Pain Management
- Health Services Research
Background:
- National organizations recommend routine pain assessment.
- Clinician utilization of systematic pain assessment data remains limited.
- Evidence is needed on whether pain assessment information impacts clinical practice.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate if systematic pain assessment information influences medical practitioners' clinical practices.
- To determine the impact of pain and depression assessment on physician prescribing patterns.
Main Methods:
- A study involving seniors with complex medical issues, assessed by case coordinators.
- An experimental group received pain and depression assessments, with results sent to physicians.
- Physicians' medication prescriptions were monitored via a provincial health ministry database.
Main Results:
- No significant differences in prescribed medications or patient pain reports between experimental and control groups.
- A notable correlation was found between depression scale scores and pain medication prescriptions in the experimental group.
- Overall pain intensity did not show significant changes over the study period.
Conclusions:
- The study findings do not support the hypothesis that readily available pain assessment information changes clinician medication practices.
- Educational initiatives and policy changes are necessary to promote the use of pain assessment data by healthcare providers.
- Effective integration of pain assessment into routine care requires further investigation and implementation strategies.
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