Finding The Best Postoperative Pain Relief
Pain has always been a matter of concern in surgery whenever it was manifested - before or after.
What is pain by definition? This word originates from the Greek word 'poin' which means penalty. A very close variation of this word in Latin is - poena, which means punishment. By definition you would say that pain is an unpleasant feeling that results from any tissue damage causing distressing sensory and emotional experience.
Postoperative Pain Relief Is Still A Very Serious Issue
Once upon a time pain was thought to be a punishment from Gods and hence, there was little effort to fight it as its acceptance was interpreted as penance. Today, pain is still under-managed mainly because of lack of alternatives.
When you are looking for postoperative pain relief, you will find that this continues to be a great challenge in spite of the advancement of technology and the availability of excellent analgesic drugs. Efforts are put in continuously to find out and apply new methods for postoperative pain relief but the results are still far from best.
What Is Acute Pain Service?
The acute pain service or APS was set up in the USA more than two decades ago, in the 80s, with the mission of improving on the postoperative pain relief. The intensive attention paid to postoperative pain has shown excellent results though the expenses almost trebled. The basic components of APS are as given below:
1. There would be highly qualified personnel available round the clock solely for administering APS
2. There would be a continuous assessment of pain during rest time and during activity time and this assessment analyzed and improved upon
3. There would be total standardization of all equipment, prescription guidelines and assessment charts for easy comprehension
4. Establishing and promoting active cooperation between doctors and nurses
5. Helping the patient understand the effort of postoperative pain relief and providing education on what the treatment options are as well as what would be the side effects it any.
6. Endeavor to use optimally all the pain management tools available as well as application of the latest research findings in the field of APS
In spite of the APS code, the postoperative pain relief is still elusive in many advanced hospitals where the success of the surgery is taken as the last level of medical intervention.
As a result of the efforts to promote APS today pain has been accepted and is treated in many hospitals as the fifth vital sign (in ICU) that requires the same intensive attention as the other four vital signs. The APS code looks promising and it could be that in time, the postoperative pain would be fully controlled through such effort.
