Pain Interventions and Treatments
2.0 Contact Hours
Effective pain management begins with effective pain assessment. Only after an assessment is completed can the healthcare provider determine how to best manage a clients pain. Barriers to pain management that can lead to the undertreatment of pain need to be evaluated and, if relevant, addressed appropriately. Once an assessment is completed, interventions and treatment options are implemented and evaluated. Interventions and treatment options can include traditional pharmaceutical options as well as integrative therapies.
Pain Management in Special Populations: Children and the Elderly
2.0 Contact Hours
Helping pediatric and geriatric populations manage their pain requires special consideration regarding the types of medications and strategies chosen, the route through which medications are delivered, and specific comorbidities or metabolic issues that may be present.
Pain Management in Special Populations: Surgery, Cancer, and HIV
2.0 Contact Hours
Healthcare professionals often face difficult challenges when working with clients who have undergone surgery or who have cancer or human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). These clients encounter unique problems with their health conditions, especially when trying to manage their pain.
Pain Management in the Adult: Acute and Chronic Pain
2.0 Contact Hours
Acute and chronic pain in the adult client have different causes, methods of diagnoses, and interventions. Effective healthcare providers understand these differences when they assess and manage their clients’ pain.
Pain Theory and Assessment Principles
2.0 Contact Hours
Pain is a universal phenomenon and its accurate and timely assessment is crucial in the comprehensive care of every patient. Pain is a subjective concept and is whatever the client says it is. Experienced across all age groups, across all socioeconomic levels, and in all settings, pain exists within the context of a culture, as well as within personal, physical, and psychological history. Pain and the search for relief is one of the primary reasons a client accesses the healthcare system. It is also one of the most complex and challenging problems in health care and biology.
Pain Treatment at the End of Life
2.0 Contact Hours
Regardless of the cause, pain is a common symptom in clients who are near death. Healthcare providers must understand the tremendous implications of pain and pain symptoms and prioritize the assessment and optimal treatment of pain in clients near the end of life. They must be knowledgeable about alternative routes for analgesia and analgesic dosing and understand when to make referrals to palliative care providers and/or specialists to assist in the compassionate and effective management of pain during this time.
Integrative Therapies for Cancer Pain Management
2.0 Contact Hours
Many advances have been made in the treatment of cancer during the last several decades and yet effective cancer pain management remains an overwhelming issue for the majority of patients. Today, there are numerous options for cancer pain management, ranging from more traditional pharmacological treatments to integrative therapies, including complementary and alternative modalities. Increasingly, research links adequate pain control with improved survival for patients with cancer. The effective treatment of pain for cancer patients must include an examination of all possible treatment modalities in order to ensure the patient receives the most compassionate care available.