Chronic Pain in the Emergency Department: A Pilot Interdisciplinary Program Demonstrates Improvements in Disability,...

Area of Science:

• Pain Medicine
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Patients with chronic pain frequently utilize emergency departments (EDs).
• High ED utilization by chronic pain patients strains healthcare resources.
• Current management strategies may not adequately address the complex needs of these patients.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility of an individualized interdisciplinary chronic pain care plan.
• To evaluate the impact of this intervention on reducing ED visits.
• To improve clinical outcomes for patients with chronic pain who frequently visit the ED.

Main Methods:

• Prospective cohort design in an urban tertiary care hospital.
• Pilot program involving 14 chronic pain patients with high ED visit frequency.
• Interdisciplinary assessment and individualized care plan integrated into the electronic medical record (EMR).

Main Results:

• Nine patients completed 12-month follow-up; multiple imputation used for missing data.
• Significant improvements reported in pain, function, and reduced ED visits.
• Positive effects observed on depression symptoms, pain catastrophizing, sleep, and quality of life.

Conclusions:

• Individualized care plans integrated into EMRs show promise for managing chronic pain patients with high ED utilization.
• This approach may be a valuable intervention for hospital EDs.
• Further research is warranted to validate these findings in larger cohorts.