Pain Categories

At the completion of the lecture the participant will: Understand the pathophysiology of acute and chronic pain Identify the best way to assess a patient in pain Become familiar with the different analgesic classes of medications Identify misconceptions and barriers to excellent pain management Develop comfort with the use of opiates in an outpatient setting Become familiar with opioid conversions Understand the documentation required when caring for a patient with chronic pain Definition of Pain Subjective: Pain is what the patient says it is; when the patient says they have it Dictionary Definition: An unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage 2Types of Pain Types of Pain: Acute: Pain lasts 6 months or less. Often a result of injury, disease, or surgery