The 2021 Physician Pain Management Questionnaire Pilot Study

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Medical Surveys
• Public Health

Background:

• Opioid prescribing for pain management requires adherence to established guidelines.
• Assessing physician awareness and utilization of these guidelines is crucial for public health.
• The National Center for Health Statistics initiated a pilot study to address this need.

Purpose of the Study:

• To outline the methodology, development, and fielding of the 2021 Physician Pain Management Questionnaire (PPMQ) pilot study.
• To test the feasibility of a large, nationally representative survey.
• To assess physician awareness and use of established guidelines for opioid pain management.

Main Methods:

• Development of the Physician Pain Management Questionnaire (PPMQ).
• Pilot study design and implementation in 2021.
• Data collection from a sample of physicians.

Main Results:

• The report details the process of creating and deploying the PPMQ.
• Feasibility of conducting a national survey on physician pain management practices was evaluated.
• Initial insights into physician adherence to opioid prescribing guidelines were gathered.

Conclusions:

• The PPMQ pilot study provides a foundation for a larger national survey.
• Understanding physician practices is key to improving pain management and addressing the opioid crisis.
• The study's findings will inform future strategies for guideline dissemination and physician education.