Pain assessment: a pilot study in an Israeli bone marrow transplant unit

The incidence and quality of pain experienced by nine patients during the first phase of the bone marrow transplant (BMT) was assessed in an Israeli BMT Unit. Reports of 215 separate episodes of pain were collected, which included the quality, intensity, and different locations of pain reported by the patient and medical staff. It was found that patients experienced on an average five anatomically identifiable pains daily for a period of > 11 days. In addition, although nurses recorded these episodes of pain more frequently than physicians did (47 versus 33%), there was still a discrepancy between the nurses' and the patients' reporting. This pilot study highlights the need for a larger study to be conducted in the area.