Applying palliative care to pain management
This is the 2nd time in 2 days I’ve seen “palliative care†applied to the care or patients who are not at the end of life.
“If the relation with pain is causal, palliative care could increase the quality of life and range of activities in which people participate,” say researchers from Princeton University in New Jersey and Stony Brook, New York.
In this survey, published in The Lancet, 29% of men and 27% of women reported some level of pain during everyday activities. Here are some findings and treatment options that might respond to complementary (palliative) treatments.
Blue-collar workers had higher average pain ratings during and outside of work vs white-collar workers.
- The authors suggest training to improve ergonomics, and availability of occupational health services, in jobs with high physical strains
Highest pain levels were associated with disability and lack of satisfaction with life and health status.
- Consider behavioral therapy or yoga? (My ideas. You can probably think of other options. Or, click “pain†on the right column).
The bottom line?
The authors recommend, “When doing a pain assessment, clinicians might consider asking for information about daily activities.â€
5/5/08 22:50 JR