Managing the problem pain patient: compliance or social control?

Area of Science:

• Medical Sociology
• Social Psychology
• Pain Management

Background:

• The patient-compliance model, common in pain management, has limitations in explaining patient-practitioner interactions.
• Existing models may not fully capture the social and moral dimensions of 'problem pain patients'.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the utility of a social control perspective in analyzing the medical management of problem pain patients.
• To propose and illustrate a social control model for understanding the construction of problem pain patients.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of data from pain management seminars.
• Examination of the patient screening process in a comprehensive pain treatment center.
• Qualitative exploration of social and moral constructions.

Main Results:

• The social control perspective offers a valuable framework for analyzing pain patient management.
• Data illustrate how patients are socially and morally constructed within pain treatment settings.
• The limitations of compliance-based models are highlighted in complex pain patient interactions.

Conclusions:

• A social control model provides a more nuanced understanding of problem pain patients than traditional compliance models.
• The social construction of pain patients is a critical aspect of their medical management.
• Further research should explore the implications of social control in chronic pain care.